It doesn’t hurt me. Do you want to feel how it feels? Do you want to know that it doesn’t hurt me? Do you want to hear about the deal that I’m making?
C’mon, baby, c’mon darling, Let us steal these blog moments from us now. C’mon, angel, c’mon, c’mon, darling, Let’s exchange this blog experience, oh
And if I only could, I’d make a deal with the blog Gods, And I’d get them to swap our places, Be running up that blog road, Be running up that blog hill, With no blog problems.
If I only could, Be running up that blog hill If I only could, Be running up that blog hill If I only could, Be running up that blog hill
I hope Kate Bush meant running, like, symbolically, cause I could maybe manage a brisk walk for a few minutes, and not on an incline…unless there was cake involved.
As for running up this blog hill, well, I could break into “The Climb” (Miley Cyrus) cause it’s always gonna be an uphill battle…so I keep remembering, stranger things have happened, but it’s about the climb not getting to the top.
So why do we keep running up this blog hill? Fame? Fortune? Fantasy? Fun? Frustration? Food? Faith? Fear? FOMO? Whatever our reasons, we blog on.
My poor little blog has stalled, no, I can’t blame the blog, it’s me, I’m stalled, again, still, eternally.
My brain races, running up that road, running up that hill, running around and around and around.
I’ve come up with a million ideas, written poems, books, posts, thought about starting a YouTube channel, well, just a a million things…then my body laughs at me, no, not a laugh so much as an evil cackle, mocking me for even trying to try.
I wanted to take this time to thank you, my dear readers for staying with me through all the ups and downs, the roller coaster of the past almost 9 years, yes, soon to be 9 years!!!
I’m glad to be part of this blogging family, so Ohana, dear blogging family, no one gets left behind. Even when we’re far apart, haven’t visited for awhile, are struggling, or get caught up in in the world and it’s wild rumpus. Join me in celebrating blogging, yours and mine, please, leave a link in the comments below to: your blog(s), vlog(s), podcasts, YouTube channel(s), books, etc.
Cheers, Santé, Gānbēi, Prost, Salute, Budmo, L’chaim, Ciyarsa, Na zdrowie, Skål, Kenadz, Biba, Cin-cin, Kāma, Salud, Stinygiasou, Manuia, Kia ora, Cirs, Lechyd da, Ci’arasa, Mabuhay, Kanpai, Gesondheid, Kippis, Cheerio, HipaHipa, Gon bui…Kepp running up with blog hill with me. Ohana. Here’s to you, to your health, to your happiness, to your future. Live long and prosper.
Money, money changes everything. 💰A penny saved is a penny earned (except in Canada, we don’t have pennies). Money can’t buy happiness (but it sure would be fun to try). Money Talks. 🤑Not enough month at the end of my money. Money is the root of all evil. 💲Money’s Too Tight (To Mention). Can’t Buy Me Love. 💰A light purse is a heavy curse.
Here’s some ways to save…
1. Money Talks
Stay connected. Stay safe. Zoom meetings help you stay connected and a Zoom account is free (40 min time limit/unlimited on holidays). If you do need a paid account, don’t be afraid to ask for a discount. For example, I received a 20% discount off Zoom for the group I founded, “Chronic Not Hopeless”. We’re a free (donations gratefully accepted but not expected, etransfer: chronicnothopeless@gmail.com) supporting each other group. There’s also, Skype, Facebook Messenger, Discord, etc.
“It’s easy to meet expenses, everywhere we go, there they are.” ~Anonymous
2. Money Money Money
Do you love streaming, but not the cost of streaming? There are some “free” alternatives, when it comes to streaming (but don’t be fooled and keep an eye out, some become decidedly less free and others more free!). Though we don’t have as many options here in Canada as larger population countries, but times are achangin’, so stay tuned. Here are few, including but not limited to:
Tubi (free and fantastic).
Food Network
Pluto TV
YTV
Slice
Vice
TVO/TVO Kids
CBC/GEM
OMNI
APTN lumi
BET
The Weather Network
CPAC
HGTV
Food Network
Classic Cinema Online
Knowledge: Kids (even has “Paw Patrol”)
Roku channel (if you stream on Roku)
Kanopy
Hoopla
PopcornFlix
Crackle
Filmrisevarious channels
CTV/Global (limited)
Also, you can buy an indoor digital TV antenna or an outdoor antenna…there are so many ways to save and see!
Plus, look for Free Trials (many streaming services are, sadly, removing their “free” trials, for example, Netflix and Disney Plus) of streaming/music/reading services. Here’s a few available now, including but not limited to:
Acorn TV
Britbox
Crave/HBO/HBO Max/TMN
Spotify
Amazon Prime Video/Kindle Unlimited/Audible
Apple TV/Apple Music
Amazon Music
YouTube/YouTube Premium
Sirius Canada
PBS
Sundance Now
Crunchyroll
Shudder
Smithsonian
Funimation
Discovery Channel
and more!
Watch and see if they’re right for you. Note the start date of your free trial and cancel if you don’t like them. Cancel a few days before, you’ll still have the preview to the end of the trial. Easy-“stay home”-“stay safe”-“stay connected”-free-peasy-lemon-squeezy.
“The safest way to double your money is to fold it over and put it in your pocket.” – Kin Hubbard💲
3. Opportunities (Let’s Make Lots of Money)
Like cash? Make some, legally, with coupons, contests, samples, and surveys! Clip, click, print, check your mail, check your email, and scan. I save a lot of money with coupons, sometimes even getting items free (what a lovely word, I never get tired of hearing or seeing it).If you’re into it, there’s also lots of free samples, promo codes, discounts, coupons, contests, and surveys out there: Savealoonie, Lifepoints, Save.ca, Samplesource, Websaver, Lifepoints,Smartcanucks, Pinecone Research, Swagbucks, Asking Canadians, and so, so many more.Sometimes, I get freebies, coupons, samples for items I don’t want or use, but get them anyway. so I give them to others. Find more ways to save and places to find savings online through frugality blogs and other websites. If you have suggestions for ways to save, please leave them in the comment box below. I love to learn.I love to save.💲
“Money often costs too much.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
4. Cheap Thoughts/Money For Nothing
Now look at them yo-yos, that’s the way you do it You blog and vlog and record, loading on the inter-net They say, blogging, that ain’t workin’, that’s the way you do it Money for nothin’ and your clicks for free Money for nothin’, clicks for free…
Truth is, blogging, vlogging, YouTubing, social media, etc., these are work, not money for nothing, not clicks for free and I’ve heard rumours some people make quite a living from it, er, not me, but I live in hope…
Whatever your reasons for wanting to blog: fame, fortune, emptying your brain (clearly, that’s mine), etc., you’ll need to dive into the challenging and sometimes murky depths of blogging, vlogging, social media, YouTubing, etc. You don’t have to be in Dire Straits to want to save or make money and there are many free or cheap blogging/vlogging platforms and editors, WordPress, Wix, Blogger, Weebly, Tumblr, Ghost, Medium, LinkedIn, Quik, Splice, Anchor, Filmora, VidLab, InShot, iMovie, Adobe, Vizmato, and well, tons more…and of course, YouTube. Will you be a viral sensation? Who knows, you’ll never know until you try.
“When people say they want to be rich and famous, just try rich and see if that doesn’t get most of it for you.” ~Bill Murray
5. Money Changes Everything
Groupon. Make sure you read the fine print (always good advice, for every single thing in life). I’ve found some great deals there, including but not limited to: Costco memberships with Shop cards/products that negate the amount of your membership (really!); pizza (anyone who says money can’t buy happiness, has never paid for a pizza or the makings of a pizza, yes, you can make pizza at home!). Oh, and I paid $4 for a movie w/ popcorn and a drink – I went and saw that movie in a theater, remember those? Back in the good old days when we went to a place, went inside the building, with other people, sat in seats, beside other people, and watched a movie.
“Money is numbers and numbers never end. If it takes money to be happy, your search for happiness will never end.” ~Bob Marley
6. Money Honey
Get paid to shop! Music to our ears and our wallets (virtual or otherwise). That’s exactly what some apps do, like: Rakuten Canada (formerly Ebates), Caddle, Checkout 51, Airmiles, PC Optimum, Petro-Points, Shopper Army, Swagbucks, Plum Rewards (the free version), The Mission Store, David’s Tea, The Body Shop, and so, so many more – look them up! And don’t forget to add the Honey, an app that checks for online coupons and can save you even more!💲
“I been shaking two nickels together for a month, trying to get them to mate.” ~Raymond Chandler
7. Love Don’t Cost a Thing
Libraries aren’t just buildings with books (but seriously, books are awesome!!!). #booklove don’t cost a thing when you use your library, especially now many libraries are fine free (you should still return your items in a timely manner). Also, many library resources are now digital: ebooks, e-audio books, streaming – and they’re returned automatically. Did you know many libraries offer free language programs, free programs like “The Great Courses”, free newspapers, free magazines, craft videos, etc. And so much more!!!Also, most cities allow you to get a non-resident card for a small fee. Go online, check it out, what do you have to lose?
Look around your neighbourhood for “Little Free Libraries” – take a book, leave a book. Truly a community spirit exercise. Sharing is caring, in so many ways.
“Money isn’t the most important thing in life, but it’s reasonably close to oxygen on the “gotta have it” scale.” ~Zig Ziglar
8. Money’s Too Tight (To Mention)
Price/Ad Matching – you can bring a flyer (not so much now, but “BC” – “Before Covid”, or show an app on a smartphone (ie. Flipp, Reebee, etc.) from one store to another, just show it to clerk and get items cheaper.Of course, an easy, amazing way to save is sales. These can also be combined with sale/reward/points items.
“A wise person should have money in their head, but not in their heart.” ~Jonathan Swift
9. Easy Money
It doesn’t have to be complicated, look close to home. Look around your place. If you have the time and energy, cooking, canning, preserving, and baking are shockingly easy ways to save money.As well, decluttering, repurposes, sewing, mending, knitting, DIY, gardening, and so much more. I love the Depression Era saying, “Use it up, wear it out, make it do, do without”.
“I put a dollar in one of those change machines. Nothing changed.” ~George Carlin
10. If I Had a Million Dollars
Sort through your “treasures”: those hidden and not-so-hidden gems collecting dust, or being used to hang clothes on; those just-in-case; might-fit-me-someday; what-if-I-need-it? stuff;maybe stored — sell them, donate them, give them away, swap them, etc. Wave a magic wand and like Harry Potter, “Evanesco!”, poof, it will all go away and you’ll be left with money, or a sense of giving, or both. Note: remove animate objects like family, friends or pets from the room before using this spell.
“The four most expensive words in the English language are, ‘This time it’s different.’” ~Sir John Templeton
11. Price Tag
Why pay more for “new”? Buy gently loved, previously loved, new to you. In this wildly consumer-driven culture, we too often “Dumpit to Crumpit”. Though luckily, many people also generously donate. Treasures to be found at: thrift stores, secondhand stores, mission stores, Salvation Army, Goodwill, yard sales/garage sale, Buy Nothing groups, swap groups, eBay, marketplace, Etsy (some new stuff, handmade) many of these places now are online as well! Don’t let perfectly lovely things go to the trash heap when you can give them new life.
“The best things in life are free. But you can give them to the birds and bees, I need money (That’s what I want).” ~The Beatles + The Flying Lizards + The Kingsmen + Jennell Hawkins (etc.)
12. Take The Money and Run
There are endless free things to see and do in your community. Explore your neighbourhood. Go for lovely walks in your parks. Parks are an amazing resource, ready for anything: Walks. Cycling. Picnics. Tai Chi. Yoga. Boating. Ice skating. Jogging. Fishing. Photography. Martial arts. Bird watching. People watching. Playing. Pausing. I love walking through our Ponds – though I live in a large, very busy city, when I step in here, I’m in the woods…
Get out there and discover!
“I’m having an out-of-money experience.” ~Author Unknown
13. Taxman
The Taxman (or taxperson) cometh, but no need to run out a pay big bucks for tax programs, a person, or company, the government gives you all that, online to do your taxes, free and well, I can’t say easy, taxes are so needlessly complicated, the least they can do is not make you pay even more for tax programs.💲
“The best way to teach your kids about taxes is by eating 30% of their ice cream.”~Bill Murray 🍦🍦🍦
14. Too Much Month at the End of the Money
Happy Birthday! Lots of places give birthday “treats” – free stuff or discounts, etc. Don’t feel comfortable giving your “real” date of birth, make yourself a few years younger. But remember, sometimes age does matters! Specifically with Student Discounts, Veterans Discounts, Healthcare Workers, Senior Discounts (some start as low as 55 – the new 45?), etc. Don’t be afraid to ask for discounts at: stores, restaurants, education,pharmacies, thrift stores, travel, car rentals, banking, hotels, entertainment, museums, galleries, and so many more! Get free ice cream, discounts, books, cookies, and so much more.
If money doesn’t grow on trees, why do banks have branches?
15. Keep Your Eye on the Money
Online is filled with reasonably priced or even free programs, courses, resources, webinars, etc. For example, how about Mindful Art (please feel free to join “Chronic Not Hopeless Mindful Art” and other programs (free!) on Zoom, contact: chronicnnothopeless@gmail.com for more info, links, questions, to volunteer, etc.) There’s also Art Therapy and keep in mind, you don’t have to be an artist to benefit from art therapy; it’s a fun activity to do while reminding yourself of your value. For example, check out “Paint It Out! Theurapetic Art” with Salima Andany, BSW, Cert. ExAT & Sandtray Therapist paintitouttherapeuticart@gmail.com
These are just a small sampling. Before you throw large amounts of money at courses, programs, webinars, there are many for reasonable prices, or even for free!
“Why is there so much month left at the end of the money?” ~John Barrymore
16. Cheap Thrills
Of course, YouTube – the vast universe of stuff at your fingertips!!! Travel the world and beyond. Meditation. Mindfulness. Cooking. CPR. Chess. “Graham Norton”. Health videos (beware). Card games. Board games,. Video games. “Honest Trailers”. Baking. Gaming. Knitting. Life hacks. Magic tricks. Sewing. Quilting. Coding. Household repairs. Shoe repairs. Car repairs. Want to know how to cut an onion without crying?
Decluttering. Organizing. Tips and tricks. Sourdough tricks. Exercise videos. Modern and classic TV and movies.Learn languages including: “Dothraki”, “Klingon”, “Elvish”, “Parseltongue”, “Huttese” and even some “real” languages.How to budget (oh no, the “b” word!). Live performance and concerts. Music videos and events.Lip Sync Battles. Cat videos, so many cat videos. How to make masks. How to sell on eBay. How to fight a shark…
How to do just about anything. Find most any (and I mean any) fix. Find “news”…from anywhere in the world (galaxy?). Find reviews. Find stuff that make you snooze…Thank you: Dolly Parton (for sharing your love of books with so many children with “Dolly’s Imagination Library”), and so many others for reading us bedtime and other wibbly wobbly timey wimey stuff, you know, stories, poems, sonnets thus keeping our spirits up and our hearts and minds soothed, all for good causes. Get online and explore.
“I’m so poor I can’t even pay attention.” ~Ron Kittle
17. Mo Money, No Problems
Want to make memes, posters, social media posts, presentations, brochure, marketing, cards, flyers, infographic, resumes, logos, postcards, photo collage, invitations, banners, business cards, desktop wallpaper, thumbnails, and more? There are many free options (with options to pay for “more”), such as, but not limited to: Canva, vistacreate (formerly Crello), imgflip, Filmora, Memegenerator, Digifloat, Makeameme, Wondershare Pixstudio, Snappa, Quickmeme, etc.
“It frees you from doing things you dislike. Since I dislike doing nearly everything, money is handy.” ~Groucho Marx
18. Can’t Buy Me Love
Can’t buy me love! And…
Walking – free.
Loyalty – free.
Quiet – free.
Integrity – free.
Common sense – free.
Snuggling (the snuggle is real) – free.
Do you wanna build a snowman? – free.
Gratitude – free.
Courage – free.
Dancing – free.
Generosity – free.
Comfort – free.
Joy – free.
Forgiveness – free.
Compassion – free.
Hope – free.
Imagination – free.
Smiling – free.
Friendship – free.
Sincerity – free.
Perseverance – free.
Respect – free.
Empathy – free.
Moonlight – free.
Laughing – free.
Truth (not just your truth, the truth) – free.
Singing – free.
Love – free.
Understanding – free.
Ambition – free.
Fairness – free.
Cheer – free.
Art – free.
Literature (see library information above)– free.
Music (your brain is full of it, let it flow) – free.
Cookies – sadly, rarely free (we need a weather machine that makes it rain cookies, who’s with me?), but you can buy the ingredients on sale or with price matching, etc., frugal.
Know what else is completely, utterly free? Kindness is free! So spread it around. Sprinkle that kindness anywhere and everywhere. Fill the world with it…Kindness is the key, and lucky for us, the free key.
All things considered I’m pleased with my year of chronic change challenge. Life has continuously and unrelentingly thrown very large, weaponized lemons at me, so I’m drinking a lot…of lemonade.
Try to let you go, but somethin’ always reminds me…
Seems breakin’ up was easier in the ’90s.
I’m tired of gettin’ tired, tired of bein’ me.
Tired of makin’ excuses about how I wanna be.
You’re everywhere, everywhere but behind me.
Seems breakin’ up was easier in the ’90s.
Back then, I could’ve convinced myself
it was you and not me,
though I said it the other way round;
love lost and found.
Could have made myself believe,
I loved you, just wasn’t in love with you 💌
(realistically, it’s you and me?).
Just the thought of it makes me blue…
Didn’t know then I couldn’t have
the bandwidth to deal with life
stresskeeps cuttin’ at me
with an jagged online knife 🔪
Tryin’ to let you go, but somethin’ always reminds me…
Seems breakin’ up was easier in the ’90s.
I’m tired of gettin’ tired, tired of bein’ me.
Tired of seein’ pictures in my brain, 🧠
I don’t wanna see.
You’re everywhere, everywhere but behind me…
Seems breakin’ up was easier in the ’90s.
Modern love leads to modern hearts breakin’ 💔
Leads to a whole lot of social media fakin‘.
You’re everywhere, everywhere but behind me…
Seems breakin’ up with myself with easier in the ’90s!
Thanks to Sam Hunt for the inspiration.
I’ve broken up with myself before, at least once or twice a decade, but it seems to get harder every decade. My most memorable break-ups were in the ’90s. It all seemed like a good idea then. 💡No awkward, “It’s not you, it’s you” conversations. I was young and thought being in love with myself was more important that just loving myself, taking care of myself.
Every time I try to make it work, but we’ve grown apart. The relationship just isn’t working for me…and me. This time I find myself feeling resentment. I resent myself for getting in my way.
Maybe it was age. My stage in my journey. Or maybe it’s those darn rosy nostalgia goggles 🥽and it just seems breakin’ up with easier in the ‘90s. Either way, I think it’s time to take our relationship to a previous level…
Sometimes you gotta stop reflecting (I’m turning into a mirror here 🪞) and take the BS by the horns; I’m doing a year of chronic change...
Step 1:Move. Done, but not terribly settled, though I’m cutting myself some slack on my (lack of) progress. I;ve been vividly reminded that Fibromyalgia is a thief. It steals your energy. -Pilfers your time. -Loots your stability. -Filches your confidence. -Snatches your pride. -Purloins your social life. -Robs you of your hopes and dreams. -Breaks and enters your life, tossing the place and adding chaos, fear, loss, and uncertainty to every moment of your day and night. Living with chronic conditions means you have to change your expectations, accommodate, modify, and most of all, adapt. I’m trying to be kind to myself.
Also, my happy places (on the page, in a screen, swimming in chocolate 🍫, chatting, laughing, in a cup of tea (or three). 🫖
Where else?
Happy on a gameboard or in the cards, among the trees 🌳, under the stars… ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
And of course, the hopes and dreams the chronic suckagehttps://yadadarcyyada.com/2019/12/06/chronic-suckage/hasn’t yet managed to rudely steal – writing a novel, learning to podcast, code, organizing (sorry, staying organized – oh I can organize, I can organize till the cows come home, it’s keeping the organization, that’s the kicker), getting better and so much more…
Step 2:Break up with myself.I’ll start slow with the simple but elegant, “I just need some space”. Then add the tried and true, “It’s for the best” and of course, “You and I should stay friends”. 🤝
Follow up with the classic, “We’re both looking for different things” and “I’ve figured out, we’ll cover more ground if we split up”.
If tears flow, I’ll pivot to the gentler, “We’re at different stages in our lives” and pop in, “I really need to work on myself right now”.
If I want to add some levity to the tense break-up situation, I can toss in a cheeky, “Our relationship is like my financial status: broke” 💸; or “I feel like I’m moving into a tunnel cause we’re breaking up” 📵; and/or “They say one person’s trash is another one’s treasure, I hope you find a pirate to love you”. 🏴☠️
Still not there yet?
Who can go wrong with a classic Star Wars break-up line? “I think I should change my name to Han cause I need to do this Solo”.
End strong with, “You are going to make someone really happy someday”. The important thing is, be honest with myself, don’t sugar-coat it or ghost myself. 👻
Step 3:Rocky Road, Vodka Sangria, box of tissues, fluffy slippers, and emo movies…with “Say Something” playing softly in the background. Check. ✔️
Step 4:Write a blog post about it during my blog anniversary month – yes, I started emptying my brain into this blog in 2013!!! Wow! Thank you for joining me in the saga of my life! 🤗🤗🤗
Step 5: Write monthly update blog posts for the next year about my chronic change trip and other stuff that jumps into my brain. 🧠
OK, OK, I see what’s happening here (I really don’t see what’s happening anywhere these days and don’t think I want to). You’re screen to screen with mediocrity, and it’s strange. You don’t even know how you feel (or if you should feel, oh gosh, so many feels…) It’s adorkable! Well, it’s “nice” to see/hear humans never change.
It’s been awhile, let’s begin. Yes, it’s really me! I’m back (does this feel like a pattern?). Breathe it in (through a damn mask) I know, it’s a lot… The snark, the jokes, gifs, memes, (all which may or may not hit the mark) I’m just an ordinary blogging universal life force
“Marvel”, “The Munsters”, and Midway” (Ed Skrein, Woody Harrelson, Luke Evans, Mandy Moore and many more, wow, imagine if they’d had social media like Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, TikTok, QQ, Viber, reddit, WhatsApp, WeChat…and war).
“Sanditon”, “Shetland” (needs 10 seasons, minimum), Stephen Colbert who’s still owning his COVID hair, “Psych” (oops, well, sounds like it starts with an “s”; I’ve heard it both ways), and “Snowpiercer” (These are our revolutions).
Thanks cartoons like: “Rick and Morty”, “Family Guy”, “South Park” “Justice League” (animated series)…not the “other” (shudder), etc.
“Julie and the Phantoms” (“Julie e os Fantasmas“).
Jimmy Fallon (I just feel there’s a lack of Paul Rudd on this show lol).
“Hamilton” (what would we do without Lin-Manuel Miranda? I don’t even want to think about it).
Thanks for even the thought of“Enola Holmes” and “Utopia” (can’t wait!).
Thanks to “Gilmore Girls”, though I’m trying not to indulge again, like a comfort food, but how about “The Golden Girls”, hey Netflix, I’m pitching you a new series, “Golden Gilmore Girls” with older Lorelei, Rory, Sookie, and Lane living in Florida?It’s gonna be a hit!
Well, come to think of it, Readers, honestly I could go on and on I could explain every unnatural phenomenon (https://yadadarcyyada.com/2017/10/26/my-big-fat-supernatural-life/) The sass, the grass, the colours, the vague meandering chats (books, movies, politics, TV shows and other shtick, it’s all about the laughs) before again going underground. Honestly, that was me just messing around…
I’ve murdered my blog, I’ve buried its guts, while trying to figure out what the heck is going on, it’s all coconuts!
What’s the lesson? What is the take-away? Be kind to everyone every single day!!! And the tapestry here on my blog Is simply sayin’, Don’t be trippin’ dawg!
Look where I’ve been (mostly home). NO, I haven’t been out of the country in 14 days (does YouTube count?). How the heck would I know if I’ve ever been in contact with anyone with COVID-19? This is a weird way to screen…for anything. Asking us, asking us, asking us, asking us, do you have: Fever•New onset of cough•Worsening chronic cough •Shortness of breath (sometimes, when watching Jason Momoa, does that count?)•Difficulty breathing•Sore throat•Difficulty swallowing (don’t say it out loud, that’s what she said)•Decrease of loss of sense, of taste, or smell•Chills (They’re multiplying; it’s electrifying!)•Headaches•Unexplained fatigue/malaise/muscle aches•Nausea/vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain (Have you seen the news/internet? If you don’t have these symptoms you’re not paying attention)•Pink eye/conjunctivitis (gross)•Runny nose or nasal congestion without other known cause (like what?)…Why make people do that whole spiel? Seriously. Why not have a digital tickety-tappin’ done by Lin-Manuel Miranda rippity-rappin’? (Ha ha ha ha ha ha, hey)And, did you Wash your hands? Seriously, before, during and after COVID, wash them!!!
So here’s the thing, every day now seems like a horror movie, full of: ghouls, fools, viruses, monsters, unknown terrors, people unable to follow simple instructions (very simple, i.e. arrows, a sign that says, “keep right”, etc.).
COVIDIOTS would probably check the dark basement if they heard a noise, or would start filming an alien ship scooping up humans, or hug a demon, freshly spawned from the bowels of Hell. I would not be at all surprised. Oh look, a guy with an chainsaw, he seems friendly! https://yadadarcyyada.com/2014/03/20/25-ways-to-stay-alive-in-a-horror-movie/
What else?My love is trying to rekindle our affair, trying to lure me back into a comfy reclining chair…with Dune (and chill?).– I keep trying to get away from movie theaters, but they keep trying to pull me back in! Perfect for Autumn, amazing cast, but since people can’t even follow arrows in stores, or signs, or instructions (even physcial distancing) – could you trust them in theaters?!? COVID fatigue? Ha! https://yadadarcyyada.com/2019/09/18/head-over-heels/ Just the latest excuse for bad behaviour https://yadadarcyyada.com/2016/09/16/you-had-me-at-cake/More like people-want-to-do-whatever-they-want-to-do https://yadadarcyyada.com/2013/08/29/the-pursuit-of-happiness-cult/. They don’t care…about you (or anyone, including themselves https://yadadarcyyada.com/2016/05/25/crapathy/ they just want to go back to doing whatever they want to do). Really, in this supernatural, so-much-cooler-finally-Fall https://yadadarcyyada.com/2016/10/14/the-glorious-chaos/ time, you’d think PPE, you know, mitigation practices, ya know, simple stuff like: hand sanitizer, masks, gloves, face shields, etc. would be the most precious things in the universe, but seems the pumpkin spice still wins….The spice extends life. The spice expands consciousness. The spice is vital to survival. I’m going to be honest, here goes, brace yourselves, I don’t like pumpkin spice, there I said it.Yet the pumpkin spice must flowhttps://yadadarcyyada.com/2015/10/09/you-may-say-im-a-dreamer/
“There is no point in using the word ‘impossible’ to describe something that has clearly happened.” === Douglas Adams
It happened and I let it happen. Not once, twice, or thrice, but over and over again. As impossible as it seemed, I let my life, wait, “let” seems too passive, I actively participated in the over-complication of my life.
Oh, I told myself I was simplifying. I did all the “right” things. I organized, sorted, classified, tidied, de-cluttered…tried to keep only things that sparked joy.
Yet my life felt like I was just moving round those deck chairs on the “Titanic” (there was room on the board for Jack, Rose, remember, never let go?).
Then complications, on tiny clawed feet creep, whether or not I leave them a treat…
1. First stage of grief – denial. In denial my life was that complicated. Ihad balls in the air, juggling like a clown; I like helping people laugh (I’m a bit of a Joker), but clowns wear too much make-up, for mypersonal taste.
“Simplification” always means removing stuff, right? Usually, but not always, sometimes it means: adding, switching, modifying, adapting, accommodating, changing, rethinking, reclassifying, redistributing…a whole lot of re-ing.
2. Next, I hit a wall of pain and guilt.
Yup, those flying “Whys” hit like me like a sock full of pennies. “Why was I so sick?” “Why couldn’t I get better?” “Why me?” “Why?”
3. Anger (Envy?) and Bargaining. “So many people don’t appreciate: their health, their life, the good people and things; why do they have so much of things they don’t appreciate?”
“Whoever may be out, let’s strike a bargain, what do you want to make this better?”
4. Depression/Reflection/Loneliness. “I’m worthless.” “I’m a drain.” “I’m a burden.” Breaks into a chorus of “All by Myself” while fighting her own hand reaching for the cookies.
5. The upward turn. “I can do this.” “I can find even more resources.” “I can find more people who understand.”
“I can help myself.” “I can push even harder.” “I’m pretty amazing.”
6. Reconstruction and working through.When I said it wasn’t all about de-cluttering, it was a big part because…sigh,
I’m a fantastic bargain snifferhunterstalkerpredator shopper.
Brand names for dirt cheap, price/ad matching, coupons/freebies, sales…long story short, had (insert understatement here) more stuff than I realized. More than half of the more is gone now.
Bumped up my phone plan cause counting seconds wasn’t saving my brain and I was missing stuff and things.
Got more medical resources.
Watched stuff that made me smile and think and not think and lot of giggling: “Knives Out”,“Chilling Adventures of Sabrina”, “Fleabag”, “The Walking Dead”, “The Good Place”, “Virgin River”, “Lost”, “Grace and Frankie” (want to know if a veteran actor/actress is alive, watch this), “The Orville”, “Jack Ryan”, “SNL”, “Joker”, “Lost In Space”, “Spiderman: Far From Home”, “Marriage Story”, “Glitch”, “The Expanse”, and thank you kindly to Netflix for Season 2 of “You”…You know I like to watch.
Unplugged from social media more; it’s a learning curve of an addiction.
7. Acceptance and hope. Now more organized, but with the understanding things pop up to: disrupt, disturb and displace the calm and toss things into the chaos realm.
Hopefully the extra measures I have taken with my “aggressive simplification” will be enough to keep the monsters of chaos at bay.
There’s no linear path to anywhere or anything, it’s all wibbly wobbly, up and down, round and round.
Most living things grieve, in different ways. We grieve those we’ve loved and lost, friendships, connections, community, hope, opportunities, time, health, jobs, dreams…
I predict complications and chaos will continue, but instead of thinking (or overthinking it, thank goodness I never ever ever ever, did I mention ever, do that!) of it all as a catastrophe, think of it as a chance to learn.
And the classic, “But you don’t look sick”. Feel free to add more. I think I’ve heard them all…but you never know.
Yup, I got 99 Problems and Fibromyalgia (Fibromialgia) is all of them…or at least it makes any problem much much much much worse.
I won’t bore you with all the symptoms:
Extreme, endless fatigue (I’ve never heard, “everyone gets tired”…sigh).
Extreme, endless all-over-body-pain 24/7/365 (“everyone has pain, especially as they get older” – how do you presume to know my pain or anyone else’s pain but yours?).
Dry eyes/mouth.
Hair loss.
IBS (Oh joy, love nothing more than talking about my bowels to: doctors, family, friends, strangers, interns, readers…”What did you want to be when you grow up?” “Constipated.”).
Dizziness.
Clumsiness.
Nausea.
Depression (tough not to be depressed by all this).
Sleep issues (screw off Alpha waves, no one wants you here).
Mood disorders (maybe my many, many moods are just as ordered as they should be).
Headaches/migraines.
Restless leg syndrome.
Anxiety (pick a kind, any kind).
Tender points (misnomer, not tender, excruciating, but trigger points make sense).
Fibrofog (what was I saying?).
Memory and learning problems, like, aah, like, well, there’s Fibrofog (what was I saying?).
Scattered thoughts (dust in the wind, all my thoughts are dust in the wind).
Numbness.
Tingling (not the good kind).
Shakiness (not the good kind).
TMJ (Temporomandibular Joint Syndrome).
Painful and frequent urination.
You may notice a pattern here, #Pain!
Sharp pain, stabbing pain, dull aching pain, burning pain, throbbing pain (Beavis and Butthead laugh for 5 minutes now about “throbbing”).
Extreme sensitivity to: light, noise, sounds, smells, temperatures, humidity, dryness, changes in the weather (especially extreme heat or cold, fun in Canada, eh).
Also, to tastes, textures (Princess and the Pea was written about someone with Fibromyalia, for sure).
Stiffness (not the fun kind).;
Especially morning stiffness (not the fun kind).
Let’s not forget Allodynia.
Itching (like, bugs-under-your-skin-when-jonesing-kind-of-itching, er, for chocolate, my drug of choice).
Waking up feeling like you’ve been run over by a truck or attacked by a Terminator or zombie (brains?) – We are The Walking Dead.
And don’t even get me started on surviving the Holidaze, er, holidays – Christmas, New Year’s Eve, birthdays, Easter, Thanksgiving, Black Friday (it’s counted as a holiday now, right?), actually I can do CyberMonday, and they’re lined up to take me out for Valentine’s Day…
I could go on and on (really), but you get the point.
It sucks.
Chronic suckage.
What can anyone do to try to help chronic suckage?
Pills/medications (anti this, anti that, pro this, pro that, SSRIs, SNRIs, NSAIDs, PB&J – checking if you were still paying attention, lotions, notions, rubs, gels – not the fun kind – vitamins, supplements, opioids, snake oil, gargoyle oil, and on and on).
Exercise.
Natural remedies.
Injections.
Yoga.
Meditation.
Deep breathing (keep breathing).
Tai Chi (saved my life).
Change of diet (I do FODMAP, look it up, you’ll hate it).
Massage (no happy endings).
Physical therapy.
Rest/relaxation/Self-Care.
CBT, CBD, CBC, CBA, COD…
Trials.
Errors.
It’s all just fleeting moments of feeling almost human.
And if all wasn’t bad enough, many people assume this invisible disability is and let’s see if I have this right, a conspiracy wherein the medical profession has effectively implemented a fake syndrome just to cater to lazy people (wasn’t that nice of them?). Perfectly reasonable, it’s not as if doctors have anything better to do. Or have reputations and licenses to protect. Or have ethics. What exactly would their motivation be? Why make up an illness, aren’t there already enough? Cancer alone should keep them hopping.
There are many health issues that can not be found through standardized testing, for example: Multiple Sclerosis, ALS, Cerebral Palsy, Parkinson’s, Autism, Lupus, ADD/ADHD, wheat or gluten ‘sensitivity’, acute back pain, as well as many mental health issues. So they don’t suffer, don’t feel – it’s all some magical conspiracy…
People like to mock. I get that. It’s become a past-time, even a job for some people, especially in the internet age. I also get those same people would want/expect doctors and people to believe them if they were ill, even if there was no standardized testing for their illness.
To the best of my knowledge, there’s no standardized testing for ignorance or stupidity yet either, but I’d buy stocks for that booming business.
I didn’t ask to be ill. Given the choice I’d be “normal”. I certainly didn’t ask to be mocked and harassed because I’m ill. Even if it was just ‘in my head’, shouldn’t anyone with a health issue be treated with dignity and respect? Maybe we need a standardized test for intolerance.
So how do I cope with ongoing agonizing pain, debilitating fatigue and all the other heaping piles of steaming sh*t that comes with Fibromyalgia aka chronic suckage? If you’re a reader of my blog you know, I think laughter is the best medicine. Laughing even if it hurts sometimes still makes me feel better. I go to a happy place like Psych or George Carlin, Seinfeld, Friends, The Office and more. Tons of laughter a day doesn’t keep the doctor away, but it gives me some quality of life.
For example, this was one of my Tweets, “When I see a thong in a store all I think is, how would I explain to #EMTs all my multiple injuries were caused by just trying on a thong. Huh. #ThatsHot #thongs“. @yadadarcyyada
I love to share the laughter. If I can make someone smile, laugh, giggle, chortle, spew liquid from their nose, then hey, I feel better. Treatments, medications, family, friends and finding a community that gets you, that understands when you have to cancel plans (again)…
Or you can’t remember, ummm, can’t remember, er, huh…and the only good thing you can say about your day is you’re “above ground”, well, anyway.
The thing is, people are just people – no matter how rich or poor; sick (this is an equal opportunity destroyer) or well; all sizes, shapes and shades; known or unknown – you don’t know what you’re missing if you don’t give people a chance. Some will let you down, disappoint, hurt your brain, your heart, your body, but they’re oddly beneficial, they help us appreciate the good ones even more.
Get out there, in person, online, by phone, text, email, do stuff, I don’t know, play cards, smile, knit, donate (give what you can, including your time and talents), bowl, cuddle, talk, sign, sing, walk, dance,embrace your crapathy https://yadadarcyyada.com/2016/05/25/crapathy/
swim, skate, scuba (gate?), especially smile at children, jog, blog, snog (probably not at the same time unless you’re uber talented), ignore, don’t keep score it’s a bore, read, write, compose, doodle, paint, play, bike, hike, “Like”,bake (me a cake? https://yadadarcyyada.com/2016/09/16/you-had-me-at-cake/),
listen, learn, love, add to the world, be part of the solution, go out with friends, care, share, spend time with family, get to know people, smile some more (and more and more and more)!!!
Consider others, let your mind soar. I can’t say you won’t ever be sorry, some folks are baffling, but on a whole, you’ll be better for it (and they will be too).
Not asking anyone to feel sorry for me (although compassion and empathy are always welcome), just a reminder that everyone has problems, 99 or less, 99 or more, just because we can’t see them doesn’t mean they aren’t there…so don’t be one of those problems.
And the classic, “But you don’t look sick”. Feel free to add more. I think I’ve heard them all…but you never know.
99 Problems and Fibromyalgia (Fibromialgia) is all of them…or at least it makes any problem much much much much worse.
I won’t bore you with all the symptoms:
Extreme, endless fatigue (I’ve never heard, “everyone gets tired”…sigh).
Extreme, endless all-over-body-pain 24/7/365 (“everyone has pain, especially as they get older” – how do you presume to know my pain or anyone else’s pain but yours?).
Dry eyes/mouth.
Hair loss.
IBS (Oh joy, love nothing more than talking about my bowels to doctors/family/friends/strangers/readers…”What did you want to be when you grow up?” “Constipated.”).
Dizziness.
Clumsiness.
Nausea.
Depression (tough not to be depressed by all this).
Sleep issues (screw off Alpha waves, no one wants you here).
Mood disorders (maybe my many, many moods are just as ordered as they should be).
Headaches/migraines.
Restless leg syndrome.
Anxiety (pick a kind, any kind).
Tender points (misnomer, not tender, excruciating, but trigger points make sense).
Fibrofog (what was I saying?).
Memory and learning problems, like, aah, like, well, there’s Fibrofog (what was I saying?).
Scattered thoughts (dust in the wind, all my thoughts are dust in the wind).
Numbness.
Tingling (not the good kind).
Shakiness (not the good kind).
TMJ (Temporomandibular Joint Syndrome).
Painful and frequent urination.
You may notice a pattern here, #Pain!
Sharp pain, stabbing pain, dull aching pain, burning pain, throbbing pain (Beavis and Butthead laugh for 5 minutes now about “throbbing”).
Extreme sensitivity to: light, noise, sounds, smells, temperatures, humidity, dryness, changes in the weather (especially extreme heat or cold, fun in Canada, eh).
Also, to tastes, textures (Princess and the Pea was written about someone with Fibromyalia, for sure).
Stiffness (not the fun kind).;
Especially morning stiffness (not the fun kind).
Let’s not forget Allodynia.
Itching (like, bugs-under-your-skin-when-jonesing-kind-of-itching, er, for chocolate, my drug of choice).
Waking up feeling like you’ve been run over by a truck or attacked by a Terminator or zombie (brains?) – We are The Walking Dead.
And don’t even get me started on surviving the Holidaze, er, holidays – Christmas, New Year’s Eve, birthdays, Easter, Thanksgiving, Black Friday (it’s counted as a holiday now, right?), actually I can do CyberMonday, and they’re lined up to take me out for Valentine’s Day…
I could go on and on (really), but you get the point.
It sucks.
Chronic suckage.
What can anyone do to try to help chronic suckage?
Pills/medications (anti this, anti that, pro this, pro that, SSRIs, SNRIs, NSAIDs, PB&J – checking if you were still paying attention, lotions, notions, rubs, gels – not the fun kind – vitamins, supplements, opioids, snake oil, gargoyle oil, and on and on).
Exercise.
Natural remedies.
Injections.
Yoga.
Meditation.
Deep breathing (keep breathing).
Tai Chi (saved my life).
Change of diet (I do FODMAP, look it up, you’ll hate it).
Massage (no happy endings).
Physical therapy.
Rest/relaxation/Self-Care.
CBT, CBD, CBC, CBA, COD…
Trials.
Errors.
It’s all just fleeting moments of feeling almost human.
And if all wasn’t bad enough, many people assume this invisible disability is and let’s see if I have this right, a conspiracy wherein the medical profession has effectively implemented a fake syndrome just to cater to lazy people (wasn’t that nice of them?). Perfectly reasonable, it’s not as if doctors have anything better to do. Or have reputations and licenses to protect. Or have ethics. What exactly would their motivation be? Why make up an illness, aren’t there already enough? Cancer alone should keep them hopping.
There are many health issues that can not be found through standardized testing, for example: Multiple Sclerosis, ALS, Cerebral Palsy, Parkinson’s, Autism, Lupus, ADD/ADHD, wheat or gluten ‘sensitivity’, acute back pain, as well as many mental health issues. So they don’t suffer, don’t feel – it’s all some magical conspiracy…
People like to mock. I get that. It’s become a past-time, even a job for some people, especially in the internet age. I also get those same people would want/expect doctors and people to believe them if they were ill, even if there was no standardized testing for their illness.
To the best of my knowledge, there’s no standardized testing for ignorance or stupidity yet either, but I’d buy stocks for that booming business.
I didn’t ask to be ill. Given the choice I’d be “normal”. I certainly didn’t ask to be mocked and harassed because I’m ill. Even if it was just ‘in my head’, shouldn’t anyone with a health issue be treated with dignity and respect? Maybe we need a standardized test for intolerance.
So how do I cope with ongoing agonizing pain, debilitating fatigue and all the other heaping piles of steaming sh*t that comes with Fibromyalgia aka chronic suckage? If you’re a reader of my blog you know, I think laughter is the best medicine. Laughing even if it hurts sometimes still makes me feel better. I go to a happy place like Psych or George Carlin, Seinfeld, Friends, The Office and more. Tons of laughter a day doesn’t keep the doctor away, but it gives me some quality of life.
For example, this was one of my Tweets last week, “When I see a thong in a store all I think is, how would I explain to #EMTs all my multiple injuries were caused by just trying on a thong. Huh. #ThatsHot #thongs“. @yadadarcyyada
I love to share the laughter. If I can make someone smile, laugh, giggle, chortle, spew liquid from their nose, then hey, I feel better. Treatments, medications, family, friends and finding a community that gets you, that understands when you have to cancel plans (again)…
Or you can’t remember, ummm, can’t remember, er, huh…and the only good thing you can say about your day is you’re “above ground”, well, anyway.
Reunited with a fantastic friend from college (we’d lost touch when the dinosaurs died), and get this, we started going to the same Fibro group on the same day, from different cities. I don’t know what they call that, fate, destiny, providence, kismet, but I call it cool and lucky.
Finding ways to help myself by helping others.
The thing is, people are just people – no matter how rich or poor; sick (this is an equal opportunity destroyer) or well; all sizes, shapes and shades; known or unknown – you don’t know what you’re missing if you don’t give people a chance. Some will let you down, disappoint, hurt your brain, your heart, your body, but they’re oddly beneficial, they help us appreciate the good ones even more.
Get out there, in person, online, by phone, text, email, do stuff, I don’t know, play cards, smile, knit, donate (give what you can, including your time and talents), bowl, cuddle, talk, sign, sing, walk, dance,embrace your crapathy https://yadadarcyyada.com/2016/05/25/crapathy/,
swim, skate, scuba (gate?), especially smile at children, jog, blog, snog (probably not at the same time unless you’re uber talented), ignore, don’t keep score it’s a bore, read, write, compose, doodle, paint, play, bike, hike, “Like”,bake (me a cake? https://yadadarcyyada.com/2016/09/16/you-had-me-at-cake/),
listen, learn, love, add to the world, be part of the solution, go out with friends, care, share, spend time with family, get to know people, smile some more (and more and more and more)!!!
Consider others, let your mind soar. I can’t say you won’t ever be sorry, some folks are baffling, but on a whole, you’ll be better for it (and they will be too).
Not asking anyone to feel sorry for me (although compassion and empathy are always welcome), just a reminder that everyone has problems, 99 or less, 99 or more, just because we can’t see them doesn’t mean they aren’t there…so don’t be one of those problems.
I wanted to be with you alone (on the internet?). And talk about the weather (What is the deal with the weather? Pick a season, stay with it til the next one). But traditions can’t be traced (or can they, again, the internet). We get tricked when we only stick with our base.Nothing keeps our attention… We’re lost in admiration, could we need it this much?Oh, is it wasting time? Just, just, just wasting time. Something happens and we’re head over heels. We never find out till we’re head over heels…
We ‘humans’ fall head over heels quickly, with: people, pets, passions, movies, books, songs (I’m still on a Tears For Fears kick although The Cars too, goodbye Ric Ocasek, you were just what we needed), politicians, celebrities, television shows, smartphones and other electronic gadgets and gizmos, cars, causes, friends, fads, flights of fancy…
And when we fall out of love, look out, love can quickly turn to hate (and shouldn’t continue to date, not great).
I do it…I fell in love with blogging (I didn’t fall for it, it tripped me). My bloglove hasn’t turned to hate, but indifference creeps in, then slinks out, but I know it will back and in greater numbers.
I still love my readers, other bloggers, but sometimes I wish I knew how to quit you (or me, or WordPress, or the internet).
I’ve fallen hard for another Australian series (https://yadadarcyyada.com/2014/09/06/miss-fishers-murder-mysteries/ or is that just gravity talking?), this time, “The Heart Guy” aka “Doctor Doctor”. A brilliant bad boy cardiac surgeon gets sent home, as a punishment, to practice medicine in his hometown, Whyhope. Naturally, things get complicated fast. Rodger Corser (In “Glitch” as well, S3 is about to crawl out of the ground soon) may play the lead, Dr. Hugh Knightbut his cast-mates are bright shining lights cutting into any and all plans. Why hope? Why not? Another season has been approved and I’m cheering. Yahoo! For Canadians this dramedy reminds me a bit of “Corner Gas” with more actual drama and for the U.S., like “Seinfeld” but with less New York snark and more Down Under snark.
I’ve got one of cupids arrows stuck deep in my heart (could explain chest pains, besides the Tietze Syndrome) for writing and reading then writing some more. Will I ever be an author, a real live published author, as many of my talented fellow bloggers are, as so many writers are, who knows, but it’s fun slow blogging and writing the world’s best novels…in my head.
Captivated with “The Handmaid’s Tale”. Thank you to the parents of Margaret Atwood and Elisabeth Moss for giving us such gifts. It’s funny to think I first read this book almost 35 years ago, when I naively thought it was fiction and thank goodness this could never happen. Note to self, never say never. If you haven’t started reading one of Canada’s most precious natural resources, Margaret Atwood, I suggest you love yourself enough to begin your journey. I’ll continue with her latest, “The Testaments”, filled with hints of things to come. https://yadadarcyyada.com/2019/03/25/welcome-to-your-life/
Infatuated with the idea that all the mysteries of Area 51 could be revealed to the world on September 20, 2019#theycantstopusall #stormarea51The Truth is Out There or more likely, anything interesting has already been moved to, er, Area 51-A or Area 52? https://yadadarcyyada.com/2017/10/26/my-big-fat-supernatural-life/
sunsets, puppies, pizza (note the coma, grammar saves lives, in this case, adorable puppy lives), Downton Abbey, The Addams Family, ancestry, kindness, songs https://yadadarcyyada.com/2019/02/06/dont-stop-me-now/ , friends, a new love (who doesn’t have to but if he looked like Negan, Starlord or Daryl Dixon that would be cool, just as completely random examples), muffins, laughter, strawberries, donuts, chocolate, chocolate donuts, kindness, cupcakes, family, and oh yeah, to write another chapter in my own story.Why suffer from FOMO, you’ll never miss out if you embrace the glorious chaos of life (every day above ground is another chance) https://yadadarcyyada.com/2016/10/14/the-glorious-chaos/
Beguiled by apocalyptic, post-apocalyptic, and dystopian anything (“anything” may be hyperbole, but that’s how things work now, right, facts begone, trouble us no more with your truthiness!),
I’m caught up on “The 100” (“May we meet again”); I miss “Colony”, “Helix”, “Falling Skies”, “Z Nation”, “Extant”, “Ascension”, “Revolution”, “V”, “iZombie”…but mostly I miss when watching/reading about this stuff was wildly fictional. But I guess, like horror, it’s a safe way to examine our fears without admitting they’re coming true. This is how we live now.
Enraptured by the final season of “Game of Thrones” (finally caught up with a free preview month). As a fan, little disappointed, as a writer, loved it, so I’m going with the latter.
My heels are over my head with anticipation, sure, things/people seem divided (remember, fear shrinks the brain), we have an economy based on endless consumerism, making ourselves miserable, envious, dissatisfied, ok, things can seem a tad hopeless right now…
What are you head over heels about, dear readers, tell me, tell me, cause I need more to love (my heart and mind are like the TARDIS, bigger on the inside).
Please send me stuff to review…Despite the Ads Ruining My Posts, I’m Not Getting Paid A Cent by WordPress…I gratefully accept promotional materials, but respectfully reserve the right to decide whether said promotional material is suitable for my blog. 100% honest reviews and the opinions, thoughts, and beliefs will be my own, not that of the provider, party, or manufacturer.
Donations to help save the endangered broke and obscure bloggers who once roamed the internet free are appreciated…it’s Paypal, for anyone including, but not limited to eccentric millionaires who want to adopt a blogger.
P.S. WordPress is greedily inserting ads into posts and holding our blogs hostage if we don’t pay the ransom to remove the malware (aka ads), I don’t get a single dime from them…
There’s a lot of noise out there about how to write a bestseller.
Why don’t we break it down.
Let’s simplify the process and get you to bestseller status in 3 days or less!
1. Write a book.
Use as many words as you think you need.
Plots are plots (it’s all been done/redone/overdone; characters are key).
Use a computer…
typewriter…
pencil or pen…
None of it means anything if you don’t use your heart.
2. Edit.
Do not try this at home.
Being your own editor is like trying to cure your own cancer.
Don’t mistake skill or intent for reality.
A friend, family member, professional editor, a dog or cat (if the communication is clear) – anyone (and I mean anyone) but you, unless you have special skills.
I’m going to keep on writing, reading, researching, submitting, getting rejected, being ignored, and only slightly feeling the stings of all the subtle and not-so-subtle scoffing and mocking.
Repeat again and again.
Why? I have to get it all out of my head.
As for would-be authors of a ‘certain age’, don’t despair, many famous authors didn’t kick-start their written legacy until later in life, not always for lack of trying:
J.R.R. Tolkien, Mark Twain, Toni Morrison, Anna Sewell, Bram Stoker,
Alex Haley, Charles Bukowski,Laura Ingalls Wilder, William S. Burroughs,
Raymond Chandler, Frank McCourt, Marquis de Sade (don’t be that guy).
Even J.K. Rowling and Dr. Seuss
weren’t spring chickens…oh the places you’ll go (er, Hogwarts?).
My point? 3 days, 3 weeks, 3 months, 3 years or 30…Write, draw, sing, dance, sculpt, design video games, whatever, creativity doesn’t come with an expiry date, a time stamp – as long as you live you can create.
WordPress hates me I don’t know why… sometimes it makes me want to cry.They do not like me here or there, they do not like me anywhere.
They steal my Likes That’s just, yikes!
Screwing up my posts, Hurts the mosts.
Fellow bloggers they unfollow A giant bitter pill to swallow.
Ruining posts with unpaid ads Really, really makes me sadz.
They give us new stuff that don’t work. We say enuff! They go beserk!So what if each blog post ain’t a pearl? On them haters I’m gonna twirl…They do not like me early or late… What you gonna do, haters gonna hate. They do not like me here or there. They do not like me anywhere.
You’re born. You didn’t ask for it, but it happened, let’s not go into detail how, there it is. Do what you will with that life (do no harm); despite what some people will tell you, you (mostly) choose how to live it.
Chocolate
One, two, one, two, three Oh yeah yeah Oh yeah yeah yeah yeah, uh! Oh yeah yeah Oh yeah yeah yeah yeah, uh! Struggled with faith in food love or food miracles (miracles) uh!Never wanna put myheart/stomachon the line, uh!But swimming in your Phenylethylalanine is something spiritual (spiritual) uh!I’m born again every time your flavonoids spend the night, uh!
‘Cause your Tryptophan takes me to paradise Yeah your Seratonin takes me to paradiseAnd it shows, yeah, yeah, yeah ‘Cause you make me feel like, I’ve been locked out ofchocolateheaven For too long, for too long… Oh yeah yeah yeah yeah, uh! Oh yeah yeah Oh yeah yeah yeah yeah, uh! I grant Bruno Mars and his writing team weren’t talking about chocolate, but feel free to go with the original lyrics, my chocolatified version, or add your food/beverage fav, I dunno, just off the top of my head: Wine, Pierogi, coffee, scones, fried chicken, brownies, Butter Tarts, Kevin Bacon (cook at more than 6 degrees), corn dogs, cotton candy, tea, Pumpkin Spice Girls latte, crumpets, snow cones, rice, cereal, funnel cakes,Sir Alec Guiness beer, martini(shaken not stirred), pizza,John Candy, B-52, Som tam, Injera, dumplings, smoothies, eggnog, Dosa, Bagels,doughnuts/donuts,Superman, Black Panther, CaptainAmerica, Incredible Hulk, Wonder Woman, Loki,Aquaman, Thor, Star Lord, Deadpool, Spiderman, Black Widow, IronMan, Batman, Captain Marvel (seriously, you can have Marvel and DC Comics cocktails – please don’t drink and hero), Fudge, Bonbons, Lauren Graham crackers (crunch super-fast), cake(https://yadadarcyyada.com/2016/09/16/you-had-me-at-cake/), Butter Chicken, tacos, Poke, Wagyu beef, paella, French toast (with ketchup) kebabs,Champ, Bannock, Corn on the cob, Potjiekos,Basil Rathbone, lobster, Baklava,Christina Applegate(haven’t watched“Dead To Me”onNetflix? Give yourself a summer treat), Philly cheese steak, Dim Sum, Samosas,Ty Cobb salad, Caesar salad (Veni, vidi, vici), Waldorf salad (or The Big Salad), Pad Thai, Bologna (m-m-m-my Bologna!),Rosemary Clooney, Bratwurst/Sauerkraut, Chicago Deep Dish, Spanikopita (I should say I love you more often), kale, New York peppermint patties, honey, broccoli,BBQ,Sean Bean(One Does Not Simply Eat Beans the Musical Fruit because the more you eat…),Tandoori, Masala, Vindaloo anything (would make a shoe taste good), pineapple(you know that’s right),Fusion (don’t jump to the conclusion these foods suffers from confusion), Piri-Piri chicken, Brandy (you’re a fine girl), chorizo, Darryl Strawberry Shortcake,
Biryani,Peameal/Back bacon,salmon, Sugar Ray Leonard, spaghetti and meatballs, marshmallows, chocolatesyrup, candy canes, candycorn,Pop Tarts,maple syrup (spaghetti with maple syrup?),Nanaimobars,TimTams,Peaches Geldof, steak, eggs,olives, spring rolls, summer rolls, California rolls, egg rolls,butteredrolls (causing rolls?), avocados, chocolate chip cookies,Beavertails, Oysters Rockefeller, Heather Graham crackers, onion rings (‘Cause if you like it, then you shoulda put an onion ring on it), Bubble and squeak, Moose tacos, Beef Stroganoff, chicken,Gyros,crab, Meat Loaf (2 out of 3 ain’t bad), Vegemite, fajitas, Naan,shrimp, Toad-in-the-hole (notoadswere harmed in the making of this dish, butfrogs are fair game for food…runKermit, run!!!),Jello, pot stickers,Buffalo wings (I get how they might fly, but how do they land?),chocolate/candybars, Ginger Rogers, fish’n’chips,Christmaspudding, Poutine,chocolate pudding,Pho, pita, Eggs Benedict Cumberbatch, enchiladas, Bloody Mary (Bloody Mary, Bloody Mary), grasshoppers(to each their own, if you cover them withchocolate…),Sourdough bread,Saffron Burrows, Chop Suey,Croissants,chocolate–covered almonds, muffins, Sloppy Joes, Brioche, Bananabread,Twinkies, Arnold Palmer, wontons, Tater tots (not made out of real tots), Carrot Top, hot dogs, hamburgers,Jajangmyeon, rye bread, Souvlaki,Munster cheese (found at 1313 Mockingbird Lane), Kobe beef, yogurt,snails (meow), Alison Brie Larson, turnovers, strudel, Beef Wellington, Gumbo, Kung Pao Chicken, Churros, Alyssa Milano cookies, nachos/salsa, ice cream,Soufflé, snake, Harvey Milk, Sushi,Irish stew, Vanilla Ice (Ice Ice Baby), crepes, Souvlaki, Blinis, mac n’cheese,
Bangers and Mash,Halston Sage,gnocchi, Chow Mein/Lo-Mein (just ‘mein’ line that stuff right into my veins), Kofta, chips/crisps,Chocolatemilkshakes, Coq au Vin Diesel,I Am GRoot Vegetables,chili, Pastitsio, Matzo Ball soup,chicken noodle soup, tomato soup…soup there it is (no soup for you!), Pop/Soda/Soda Pop/Soft drinks,Tim Curry,cheesecake, lamb (“What do you mean, you don’t eat no meat? [the entire room stops, in shock]…That’s okay. I make lamb.” Hilarious line, only Andrea Martin could have pulled it off; My Big Fat Greek Wedding),Sandwiches, bacon, peanut butter andbananasandwich, NewYork-style pastrami,pickles, clam chowder, Knish, Fiona Applepie, cream pie,Cherry Jones pie, infinite pi? Halle Berry cobbler, stromboli, Baked Alaska, haggis, Kugel, tamales,Beef Bourguignon, calamari, pancakes, caviar,Waffles,Salmon Mousse, Cawl, Chuck Berry crumble (Roll Over Beethoven), French Fries, deep-fried ice cream, cannoli (leave the gun), hummus,lasagna, Reuben,popcorn…Sorry, I think I just fell into a food fantasy spiral…Anyway, yeah yeah yeah yeah ’cause I really think food could bring us together,think of it babe whenever, some foul-talking jerk comes along trying to divide us, you gotta stay strong…Look in your heart and let food keep us together…whatever. I will, I will, I will I will be there to share forever…I recently tried to break free from my chocolatemania…not cold turkey (of course).Just weaning myself down. As long as stress stays away (withFibromyalgiaand life, sounds reasonable), I’m sure thechocolatecraving will as well (ha!).Speaking of First World Problems ‘stress’(https://yadadarcyyada.com/2015/04/10/im-hooked-on-a-feeling/), you may have noticedWordPress(can’t you just pretend to be nice? https://yadadarcyyada.com/2016/06/10/cant-you-just-pretend-to-be-nice/) with it’s new Gutenberg Editor has riddled posts and comments(https://yadadarcyyada.com/2019/05/03/very-me/)with ADS, as far as I’m concerned, stealing our creative voice.Unless you pay the greedy blog gods a ransom fee to remove the malware (aka ads).Why does society put up with greed, lies and corruption, even making excuses for it? Could be we feel powerless, maybe we’re just so used to being lied to, we’ve got consumer Stockholm Syndrome.Whatever the reason, it’ll only get worse. In The Game of Life(https://yadadarcyyada.com/2019/03/25/welcome-to-your-life/)you encounter obstacles, but at least there’s a chance to win; who thinks in this checkered world, the game is permanently fixed?
Death
You’ll die. I’ll die. None of us gets out alive. We didn’t ask to be here. Hopefully we had some good times along the way, but we’re all going to die, one way or another. Don’t have to like it; there it is. Someday you’ll blow out the last candle on your birthday cake. Answer a door to a Mister Death, something about the reaping. Go gentle into that good night or rage against it, but don’t just kill time getting there. Until then, hope you have the time of your life.
I have always been me and despite many attempts to make me not me, I still seem to manage to be me. That’s not always a good thing. Read some of my stuff, comment, critique, praise, ignore, puzzle, or just do whatever you want. That’s my blog bio entitled, “Very Me”; has been since 2013…
Taylor Swift’s song, ME! is making ME rethink my Very Me title, so I’m running a contest to help ME pick a new blog bio title, with no prizes whatsoever, except knowing you’ve helped ME!
Connection comes with risk. Always has, always will. Connecting offers up our minds, hearts, who we are, who we want to be, who we don’t want to be – all wide open! Connection has many benefits: love, happiness, acceptance, companionship…but there’s a flip side, we also open ourselves to: rejection, disappointment, ridicule, pain, and a whole other host of suffering.
Do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better. ~Maya Angelou
I’m wrong a lot, no, maybe wrong is the wrong word. I’m on a persistent path of change. Sometimes I want that change. Sometimes I don’t. Sometimes I’m not even aware things have changed until…well, that’s another story for another day.
None of this means we should stop trying to connect. Connect cautiously.
Beware, connection machines like: Taylor Swift, Ryan Reynolds, Cristiano Ronaldo, Selena Gomez, all the sundry Kardashians/Jenners, Kanye West, Ariana Grande, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Camila Cabello, various ‘Royals’, Jordan Peele (new Twilight Zone, nice and out there), Beyonce, each and every Marvel hero and villain Anyone see or want to see Avengers: Endgame? No spoilers. Now waiting for Toy Story 4? The Big Bang Theory or Game of Thrones finales? (The Big Game of Thrones Bang Theory?) They always have us waiting for something; Disney, Apple, McDonald’s, Toyota, Microsoft, Wendy’s, Visa, Post, Nike, Samsung, ACME, Kraft, Mastercard, BMW, Trump, LG, Walmart, Sony, Burger King, Volkswagon, Huawei, Warner Bros, etc. – are all about selling. Fluff connections.
People love the rich and famous (or simply infamous), or hate them (or love to hate them), often for all the same reasons, and pay way too much attention to them and way too much money (even money they don’t have) to be like them. Connection should bring us together for the greater good not just to make us want to buy more goods.
Social media whips people into a frenzy of, er, frothy connection with a cultivated, data-driven mix of: exaggerated praise, repetition, cruel attacks, misunderstandings, FOMO, repetition, deliberately aggressive language, SEO, influencers, native advertising, gossip, repetition, etc. True connection isn’t about massive numbers, they might be impressive, but what do they really mean?
People are people, no matter their title, bank accounts, wheels, clothes, or what they use to connect. It’s choice, your connections to make. Like blogging, you put an offering of your mind and heart into a blog post, press Publish trying for a real connection. Good stuff: readers feeling something (yeah!!!), comments, follows, shares, likes. Bad stuff: readers feeling something (shudder!!!), rude comments, unfollows, threats. Sometimes, simply silence, like digital crickets (in blogspace no one can hear you blogscream).
Newsflash, you can’t get any connection without beginning. If you want to connect, find people with common interests, start a club, join a club, (except a serial killer club, skip that meeting and report it); find people you’d like to know, not just those you think you should know. If you want to blog, write a blog post. Publish it (this part is super important). Connect with other bloggers, readers, etc.
Here are a few of my past, umm, attempts at connection…
I really don’t mind if you want to send ME free stuff (trying to sound cool about it, but… I love free stuff!). I gratefully accept promotional materials, but respectfully reserve the right to decide whether said promotional material are suitable for my blog. 100% honest reviews and the opinions, thoughts, and beliefs will be my own, not that of the provider, party, or manufacturer.
Donations also gratefully accepted (but certainly not required) to offset blogging (not chocolate) costs. Help save the endangered broke and obscure bloggers who once roamed the internet free. It’s Paypal, for anyone including, but not limited to eccentric billionaires who want to adopt a broke and obscure blogger.
Bloggers struggling (like ME!) with the new “Block” or “Gutenberg” Editor on WordPress, yes, it’s difficult, if anyone tells you differently they have a Premium account, are a computer genius or maybe they’re a computer!
Is it worth it? I don’t see it. Classic Editor, basic and awkward, yes, but this is waaaaaaay more time-consuming.
Easier for those new to WP, ha, like they care, we’re all just lab rats in their data experiments. Wish they’d bring back the editor from 2013 – fast, easy, so very very easy. I did this post as a test, what do you think dear readers, stay with this or go back to the Classic?
Goodbye Peter Mayhew, forever in our hearts as Chewbacca. “GGGWARRRHHWWWW.” “AAARARRRGWWWH.” “RRRAARRWHHGWWR.” Indeed, words to live by.
On Star Wars Day (isn’t that every day?) May The Fourth Be With You (and Happy Revenge of the Fifth, though I prefer to celebrate on May 6th, after Cinco de Mayo, makes more sense). Hope each day treats you kindly.
Bloggers and readers of every age. Wouldn’t you like tosee something strange? Come with me and you will see. This, our blog party of Halloween! Share it once, share it twice. Take a chance and roll the dice. Ride with the moon in the dead of night. Everybody scream, everybody scream!
In this blog party (share your links to your or others blog posts, books, social media, whatever!) of Halloween (or not)!
The more the scarier!!! #TheMoreTheScarier
Memories shape our lives and we cling to them as a witch clings to her flying broom (or vacuum). Some memories are comforting, others haunting. Do you remember the first time you heard: One-Eyed, One-Horned Flying Purple People Eater? How about Monster Mash? Thriller? Dead Man’s Party…Sympathy for the Devil, Time Warp, (Don’t Fear) The Reaper, Devil Went Down To Georgia…Dragula, Welcome to my Nightmare, This Is Halloween…Who You Gonna Call? (Ghostbusters)…2018 version: Who You Gonna Text? (Emojibusters)
Hocus Pocus came out the same year and it’s cheesiness put a spell on me for all time.
Halloween attacked theaters (1978, 40 years ago and still today) and thanks to lax age rules back then, I probably saw it on the big screen. I heard that music and I was transfixed, they had me. Then the cinematography sucked me into the vortex of Michael Myers; I was right there, running scared with Laurie Strode/Jamie Leigh Curtis (Final Girls rule!). https://yadadarcyyada.com/2014/03/20/25-ways-to-stay-alive-in-a-horror-movie/
Night of the Living Dead was 50 years ago and sadly, the ending stands up the most in these troubled times, proving the point, the more things change the more they stay the same. https://yadadarcyyada.com/2016/10/14/the-glorious-chaos/
Netflix’s vision of The Haunting of Hill House may thrill and chill you. Starring Michiel Huisman of The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society -thanks Netflix for keeping the original book titles, for both and possibly for redoing Sabrina, I think I’m missing the teenage witch angst campiness, but adding MichelleGomez aka Missy from Doctor Who , genius!), Game of Thrones,Orphan Black, Nashville;also,Timothy Hutton; Carla Gugino; Henry Thomas (E.T. Phone Home!)and more, it’s not too scary, er, depending on your definition of scary. https://yadadarcyyada.com/2014/10/19/religion-politics-and-the-great-pumpkin/
Are You In The House Alone reading this or out with strangers or stranger things? People are strange and these days when I try to scream it only comes out as a yawn (thank you, Barenaked Ladies, that sum of all fears it up). https://yadadarcyyada.com/2016/10/28/enter-at-your-own-risk/
Now I’m getting sleepy and hollow (needs more chocolate andeye of newt). This Haunted Halloween Blog Party has no rules, except, like with blogging itself, have a bloody good time! https://yadadarcyyada.com/2017/04/21/dancing-in-the-dark/
Something wicked this way comes and horror gives us a way to examine the scary, horrifying, most frightening, the darkest parts of our world in a safe space, so you might say we horror fans are the original snowflakes…let’s hope we don’t melt.
Sorry I’m not sorry…Not sorry I took a blogging break to question myself. I was seized with a feeling, a feeling that I had nothing else to say…I know that doesn’t stop some folks, but I didn’t want to waste my time or yours, you know, overstay my welcome.Then lately, everything I read or watched seemed to have the theme of atonement, redemption – maybe my brain was begging to reclaim my blog, atone for not believing in myself, redeem my poor little lonely blog sitting here, hoping against hope, to be read, so I thought, what the heck, a few more posts couldn’t hurt (er, famous last words?).
Not sorry a couple of wonderful bloggers/authors, Teagan and John knew just how to lure me back, putting down Reese’s Pieces, or in this case, books/ARCs, to lead me back to blogging (Be Good).
Atonement in Bloom, like the first book in the series (it is a series, please please please say it’s a series),roars and purrs with mystery, magic, hope, and intriguing characters you just need to know more about (unlike some people). This book review would not be complete without advising you of something quite dire indeed – this book should come with a warning label, “Read at your own risk, addictive and time-consuming in the best way possible”. Not sorry I’m not a big fan of flowers, never was, but I do like hedge mazes or a cool Labyrinth (yes, including the awesome movie with David Bowie and the muppets) and this book had enough twists and turns to do any of those, even the Royal ones,proud. This is one of those Indie books, like it’s predecessor, that should be made quickly (but well) into a series of hit movies, starring, just to throw a few names out there: David Tennant, Aden Young, Norman Reedus, Nathan Fillion, Richard Armitage, John Krasinski, Ian Somerhalder, James Spader, Chris Pratt, Benedict Cumberbatch, James Roday…I’ve got a whole list (you know that’s right) and of course be these books should be and remain #1 on every Best Sellers List, magical and otherwise. They are simply the cat’s meow.
John W. Howell is a gentleman in the truest sense of the word, you will never be sorry if you visit his blog and books. https://johnwhowell.com/author/ His latest book, The Contract (Between Heaven and Earth) is co-authored with Gwen M. Plano http://www.gwenplano.com/ (I look forward to reading more of her work as well). It’s a complex story that could be hard-to-follow, perhaps because it’s such a unique fusion of the natural and supernatural, but instead this tactile and celestially charged story has wings that fly in a metaphysical rush through love, hope, honour, action, and mostly, redemption. It was one of those, I’ll-just-read-a-little-more-maybe-a-few-more-pages-just-one-more-chapter-until-I’d-devoured-the-whole-book-and-had-to-write-this-book-review-or-my-version-thereof type things. Heart-thumping, in more ways than one. I can clearly picture The Contract as a movie, or a Netflix series (hint hint Netflix, get this before Hulu, Amazon Prime, Playstation Vue, HBO, or someone else gets it).
Not sorry I’m honest (even in book reviews, though I’ve severely tempered my extreme, sometimes remorseless bluntness over the years, so please, send me your books). Remember when honesty, truth, facts, used to be a good thing? If you think you have a valid point, or story, or belief, or you didn’t break the law, why lie?
Not sorry life isn’t fair (doesn’t mean I won’t complain about it now and again…and again?).
Not overly sorry I didn’t get everything or give everything.
Not much point being sorry I screwed up and will do so again.
Not even slightly sorry I have opinions and can still compartmentalize, be objective and effective…as can many others. #sorrynotsorry
Not particularly sorry I’m dumb about some things and smart about others, addicted to chocolate and gifs and memes and books…also, not sorry I’m not: young, rich, stunningly beautiful, stick insect thin, famous, infamous, or quiet.
Not sorry I ignore the trolls, their utter and intense cruelty, while still feeling slightly nauseated that people are so angry, so hurt, so pathetic that they have to lash out at others to feel better, or maybe just to feel anything?
Not sorry I found the staggeringly absorbing TV series, Rectify Sundance/Netflix starring the remarkable Canadian-Australian actor Aden Young (in looks a cross between Nathan Fillion and Tom Hardy, but quite different from either, and I say that as a fan of all), also, Abigail Spencer, Clayne Crawford, Linds Edwards, J.D. Evermore, J. Smith-Cameron, Nathan Darrow, Caitlin FitzGerald, Adelaide Clemens, Luke Kirby, as well as an impressive amount of Deadwoodand The Walking Dead (idea for a new show, The Walking Deadwood? ) alumni. This is a compelling cautionary tale of how our carelessness with people can start chain reactions of brokenness. That despite unspeakable (but needs to be spoken of, long and loud) cruelty and injustice, you can find hope, kindness, justice, and even, redemption, sometimes in the most unlikely places. If this doesn’t fix in your mind how easily life can come undone and redone, I surely don’t know what would.
Not sorry I believe piracy is not a victimless crime, but shiver me timbers, charge less, yo ho ho and we’d buy more, you scurvy dogs!
Not sorry I don’t know everything. I can’t rectify all mine and the world’s problems. I can’t readily atone for all my alleged “sins”. Partly because I don’t see some of them as sins, my truth isn’t your truth and your truth isn’t my truth. Partly because time takes care of all that – a memory is not a fact. Perhaps I’m reaching an age where I’m unapologetic, but that’s a story for another day.
If I should stay
I hope I won’t
be in your way
So I might stay or
I might go,
but I know
I’ll think of you
every step
of the way
And I will always love you
I will always blog love you
Mostly sweet memories Is all I’d take with me No more goodbyes No outcries We both know you have all you need And I will always love you I will always blog love you
I hope life treats you kind And I hope you have all you’ve dreamed of And I wish to you joy and happiness But above all this, I wish you love.
And I will always love you… even if you don’t agree with my beliefs, we don’t have to believe the same things to be friends, to find common ground, to wish each other well, and to support each other, because as humans, we’re all in this together.
I will always love you…even if you don’t agree with my politics. I’ll still say my piece, why is everyone arguing? We don’t need to agree on everything, we just need to believe simple things,
Lying is still lying, truth is still truth, spinning just makes your head spin…do we sometimes listen to lies because it’s easier, what those lies offer is easier? The truth is hard, we think we can’t handle the truth.
We all want someone to look at us the way some of us look at: cake, steak, cookies, wine, bacon, beer, coffee, pizza, or anything that has the word, chocolate in it – how do you know if chocolate really loves you, when it’s an all-consuming love.
Even if you have to sing the alphabet song in your head when doing things, you’re still adulting just with help from your inner child.
Slavery was not a choice, Kanye West (being ignorant is a choice, clearly).
We wish everything was as easy as getting fat (it isn’t).
When you’re screwing something (mind out of the gutter, I’m talking IKEA and handyperson type things), it’s easier (at least for me), lefty loosey, tighty righty.
Learning to love, and learning to love learning, those are the greatest loves of all.
Our brains and hearts are like the TARDIS in Doctor Who, bigger on the inside.
The Universe isn’t telling you anything, it has better things to do – and we rarely make the right choice when you’re already looking for someone to blame or praise for that choice.
Technology is cool, it’s not people, TV, movies (yes, like “Marvel’s Avengers Infinity War”) are cool, they’re not real people…
The world would be a better place if everyone felt safe – safe from rape, murder, torture, scams, lies, and they’d feel safe if everyone had affordable housing, enough to eat, an education, help when they need it – it’s not a Utopian dream, it’s more than possible, we just need to stop subsidizing the rich – funny how they say they believe in Capitalism and believe Socialism is ‘evil’ yet the rich always have their hands out for subsidies. https://yadadarcyyada.com/2015/08/16/everybody-wants-to-rule-the-world/
What we think of as rights are actually leased privileges, they can be repossessed any time. https://yadadarcyyada.com/2016/09/16/you-had-me-at-cake/And I could go on and on (but who would read it with WordPress and the lack of notification of posts, sigh, so bored), but what’s the point, change your expectations and be happy, life’s too short not to be.
Many books, songs, art, TV programs, and movies question whether we’re real, what is real. Hunger Games, “Real or not real?” and in Westworld, “What is real?”.
The overly simple, but perfect answer was, “That which is irreplaceable.”. Good people are irreplaceable. Good times are irreplaceable. Literature, music, art, TV/Movies – those that change you, move you, touch you, elevate you from surviving to thriving is irreplaceable, but generally, stuff is replaceable, or unnecessary. Truth is irreplaceable.I will always love you…even if you don’t Like and share my posts (please Like and share my posts).I will always love you…even if odds are you won’t always be on my side or ever by my side, we’re still together.I will always love you…even, to paraphrase Maya Angelou, I forget what you said, what you did, I’ll always remember how you made me feel. https://yadadarcyyada.com/2018/04/15/tra-la-la-tra-la-la-la/I will always blog love you because I’ve learned so much from blogging, my readers, and fellow bloggers. https://yadadarcyyada.com/2015/04/10/im-hooked-on-a-feeling/https://yadadarcyyada.com/2015/08/27/message-in-a-bottle/https://yadadarcyyada.com/2017/02/02/theres-no-crying-in-blogging/
When this song was first written by Dolly Parton in 1973, yes, 45 years ago, it was a love song, not romantic, a goodbye song for Parton’s professional break-up with her mentor, producer, and longtime duet partner, Porter Wagoner. It’s been sung by everyone, from Kenny Rogers (when he looked like Kenny Rogers, why do people do cosmetic surgery, https://yadadarcyyada.com/2015/04/05/its-not-the-years-honey-its-the-mileage/ – own those wrinkles – they pay their rent in experiences, memories, days, weeks, months, years of being you https://yadadarcyyada.com/2015/10/03/sweet-dreams-are-made-of-this/), Linda Ronstadt, and little known singer in a little known movie, I think it called something like, “The Bodyguard”, with Whitney Houston and Kevin Costner? (“Are you pondering what I’m pondering, Pinky? “Well, I think so, hiccup, but Kevin Costner with an English accent?”https://yadadarcyyada.com/2014/01/30/pinky-the-brain/). I don’t think any really beat Dolly’s version, but the song is an earworm, which, like blogging, once in your head, rarely leaves.
“Never put off till tomorrow what you can do day after tomorrow just as well.” -Mark TwainI’m a pro at procrastination, no amateur stuff for me. I wish I could stop procrastinating, but I keep postponing it.I do it when blogging, postponing writing posts – I tell myself it’s a lack of energy, lack of time, lack of ideas – I wish those were truths, but like most cases of procrastination, my real issue, fear. If I delay doing something, it can’t fail.
My procrastination is getting worse, becoming a chronic condition.Is it the amount of choices? Time inconsistency? Self-censorship? Constant interruptions? Laziness? Lack of focus?We all put off doing things, but when does it move to acting against your best interests, your better judgement, when does procrastination take over your common sense?
What if I’m not even a pro procrastinator, but just an amateur stresstinator?https://yadadarcyyada.com/2014/04/05/overwhelmed/Either way, I need to get out of my head, out of my own way, so I ignored the Scarlett O’Hara voice in my head, telling me to think about it tomorrow (after all, tomorrow is another day)…Then fiddle-dee-dee, I called/emailed/talked to who I needed (note I did not use the word “wanted”) to contact, and even wrote this post; giggling (mostly in my head), thinking of Carol Burnett’s “Went With The Wind”.
“You don’t stop
laughing when
you grow old,
you grow old
when you stop
laughing.”
– George
Bernard
Shaw
There isn’t as much laughter as there used to be,
no, I’m completely wrong, there’s just as much, if not more laughter, it just seems less jovial, less fun, more jeering, sneering, mocking; less of a tonic, more of a poison.
We’re in the middle of a Civil War, without the cool uniforms, just about as many guns, more antibiotics and opioids, but with the same unfortunate emphasis on uncivil. I don’t think this will change anytime soon. But in the whimsical winsome wisdom of the surprisingly philosophical show, Blossom:
“Don’t know about the future, that’s anybody’s guess
Ain’t no good reason for getting all depressed
Buy up your pad and pencil, I’ll give you a piece of my mind
In my opinionation, the sun is gonna surely shine”
(make sure you have sunglasses). “Opinionation” is right on – nations fueled by opinion and connected by the internet. https://yadadarcyyada.com/2015/05/19/the-internet-has-spoken/ Many feel out of control (without even the illusion of control), and have inaccurately begun to believe our opinions are truth, that feelings are facts while desperately trying to process more information in a day than we used to get in 10 years…is it any wonder we’re clinging to numbers, theories, gossip, polls, conjunction, speculation, sensationalism.The song, “Murder by Numbers” by The Police keeps popping into my head; or Suicide By Numbers, we’re letting demographics kill our sense of self and poor common sense on a slab somewhere, waiting for the autopsy.Statistical characteristics of human populations, such as age or income, could be used to find out who needs shelter, food, medical attention, instead it’s used mostly to identify markets to sell sell sell (did I mention to sell?). It adds to the distraction and the ‘us versus them’ mentality that is tearing us apart.Death By Demographics is also the title of the final episode of Murder She Wrote, not unironically was cancelled in 1996, due in part to demographics and Angela Lansbury’s boredom after 12 years of playing Jessica Fletcher, either the smartest woman ever or a serial killer who pins crimes on others.It was a time of strange, supernatural, and youth: Friends (How you doin’?) https://yadadarcyyada.com/2017/09/28/we-were-on-a-break/, The X-Files (The Truth Is Out There?https://yadadarcyyada.com/2017/10/26/my-big-fat-supernatural-life/),7th Heaven, The Unabomber was captured, so many were doing the Macarena (and badly), there were heroes and zeroes, Independence Day, Spice Girls (oh no, now I’m humming “Wannabe”), 3rd Rock From The Sun,Tupac died (or did he?), ER, talking about the Superbowl (so much has changed…), Tickle Me Elmo – good thing Fifty Shades (ummm, Happy Valentine’s Day???) wasn’t out then, folks would have lined up to buy Tie Me Up and Tickle Me Elmo https://yadadarcyyada.com/2015/02/12/fifteen-shades-of-valentines-day/ , Seinfeld (What is the deal with that?)…
Demographics feed our fear and anger. Our fear of missing out (FOMO https://yadadarcyyada.com/2014/11/08/is-everyone-hanging-out-without-me/ https://yadadarcyyada.com/2017/01/06/im-not-inclined-to-resign-to-maturity/), and our fear/anger of not getting enough or what we “deserve”.Social media is the master class of demographics, people mindlessly drooling over videos, pictures, stories – a viral version of gossip and tabloids, oozing out of your laptop, tablet, desktop, and/or phone.Numbers are definitely the ruling class. The nobles send out the knights to hack our brains, find out what scares us, what tempts us and there it is, ready to by.Even blogging has become all about the numbers, instead of connection. https://yadadarcyyada.com/2017/02/02/theres-no-crying-in-blogging/Numbers are important, but letting them dictate who we are, what we are, what we do, you have to show some caution. Choices should be made with information, knowledge, facts…anyone remember those?Maybe I’m just looking for answers where there are more questions, I shouldn’t blame numbers, they’re just hanging around, building the universe, what we do with them isn’t their fault; maybe they could even help us remember we’re all in this life together. We’re all in this life together (oops, there goes my Groundhog Day again https://yadadarcyyada.com/2014/02/02/groundhog-day/). So stay warm, eat some pancakes https://yadadarcyyada.com/2015/02/17/well-always-have-pancakes/, find out how many weeks of winter are left, love, and keep laughing, but not at each other.
Once upon a time, a woman began a blog; she had no idea what she was doing, but that had never stopped her before. Almost four years passed and she found blogging was just like life, only with fewer calories and even more emails.
1. Life and blogging are about choices. Good? Bad? Who knows, until you make them.
3. The truth is always out there, whether it comes out or not, you’ll always know it can come out.
4. If you’re going to worry, make it worthwhile. On your deathbed I doubt you’ll be stressing out about if your toes look good in sandals, if you have the biggest house, fanciest car, most jewelry, and who you knew… https://yadadarcyyada.com/2016/05/25/crapathy/
5. You’re not the only one. Find someone who also thinks they’re the only one – you might help each other.
6. Having a love affair with cake and cookies can be epic, like, movie epic. Then again, Titanic and Romeo and Juliet…Balance in all things.
7. Laundry is evil and like all evil it grows if you ignore it…even to blog.
8. Be selective how you’re giving your time, it’s the one thing you’ll never get back.
9. Let your imagination run away with you sometimes.
10. Be a superhero. You don’t need fancy gadgets like Batman, alien powers like Superman, Amazon (ish?) powers like Wonder Woman. No cool suits like Iron Man, Deadpool, or Spiderman…Nope. You just need to care. Be a friend. Be there. Help someone. In the blogworld, ‘Like’ their post. Share their post. Blogging is strange when you’re a stranger…get out there and show some #bloglove Saw Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2 (awesome, but I wasn’t as hooked on the soundtrack as the first one…I am Groot) – it made me want to run out and help the world. Had to rewatch Guardians of the Galaxyhttps://yadadarcyyada.com/2015/04/10/im-hooked-on-a-feeling/ because, hey, Chris Pratt.
11. There’s enough hard stuff in the world and the blogworld, don’t add to it.
12. The worst crime that I ever did, besides listening to rock’n’roll (paraphrasing The Stranglers, with a giggle), was telling myself I wasn’t good enough; if I didn’t believe it, why the Hell else would anyone else?
13. People always say “quit whining”…why? Sometimes, in the midst of a good whine sometimes comes a flash of insight, a bolt of wisdom, a bombshell of brilliant. Again, moderation.
14. If you’re good at something, learn how to be good at it for others too. Have the Time of Your Life. I watched the TV version of Dirty Dancing…made me miss Patrick Swayze…and Jennifer Grey’s nose. Nobody puts bloggers in a corner! https://yadadarcyyada.com/2015/09/05/ive-had-the-time-of-my-life/
15. Life goes around and around. Watching Twin Peaks: The Return – just as weird, but sadly, less playful https://yadadarcyyada.com/2015/08/02/never-tear-us-apart/ – I’m reminded, you always look back through different eyes. My blog has something to tell you – when you get there, you’ll already be there.
16. You can lead a good life without TV, you can also lead a good life with TV – life doesn’t have to be back and white (TV taught me that).
17. Despite what you may have heard, ‘Grease’ is not the word, but neither are: ‘low-rise’, ‘low-carb’, ‘SEO’, ‘dirt jeans’, ‘alternative facts’, ‘influencer’…
18. Don’t be a wrecking ball (also don’t swing on one naked, you don’t want to become a meme, right Miley Cyrus? https://yadadarcyyada.com/2013/08/27/blurred-miley-lines/ ). Try to leave things as good or better than you found them.
“Making your way
in the world today
takes everything you’ve got.
Taking a break from
all your worries,
sure would help a lot.
Wouldn’t you like
to get away?
Sometimes you want to go
Where everybody
knows your name,
and they’re always
glad you came.
You wanna be
where you can see,
our troubles are all the same….
You wanna go where everybody knows your name.” (Cheers) Yup, that’s blogging in a nutshell – bloggers from around the world gathering at a local establishment to share our joys, sorrows, fears, woes, hopes, wisdom, jokes, dreams, and hopes. And I get it, blogging isn’t curing cancer. Blogging won’t solve devastating problems: world hunger, disease, poverty, climate change, drought, unemployment/underemployment, etc. Blogging probably won’t overcome the horrors of: war, terrorism, racism, prejudice, sexism, crime…
It’s still not ok for WordPress to use bloggers as lab rats (it’s also not ok to use rats, or any living things as lab rats). I’m already in their bad books https://yadadarcyyada.com/2015/03/26/why-i-will-never-be-freshly-pressed/WordPress, change your motto, “If it ain’t broke, break it” to “Let it be”.
Step right up! Come and see! Things your eyes and ears won’t believe! Welcome to the blogging/internet circus!
See the clowns (only some are scary)!
See the boy raised by wolves (Trump wasn’t raised by wolves? I’d just assumed…). See the living skeleton (Oops, sorry, that’s a model). See the Spineless Wonders (we can overcome the lies…and stop using the Hitler card!).
See the bearded lady (The joys of menopause?). See the Strong Man/Woman (Anyone who believes facts, not alternative facts). See the trolls (Hired and those that do it for kicks).
Welcome to blogging, like dancing in the dark, while eating cotton candy with your toes on a Ferris Wheel, in the rain, as someone shoots darts at you. Are you ready bloggers, start blogging…
1. Blogging works best if you have a blog, if not, start a blog.
2. Write ‘posts’ aka string together a bunch of words you hope (desperately) make sense. Maybe add some images. TADA!
3. Don’t forget to add tags. Not skin tags or sales tags; tags letting people know what is in your post.
4. Think you’re done? Press the button (Not the red button!!!), the publish button. A crucial step, otherwise you’ll think your blog is very unpopular.
5. Big, bright, and beautiful! Way too much food! Rip-off games! Tunnels of Love! Dicey ‘rides’! Mistreated animals (so wrong)! Chocolate-covered everything! Haunted Houses! Welcome to the Circus Internet Maximus!
6. You’re so vain, you probably think this post is about you. Don’t stress, readers won’t always get it or agree. You have choices: keep going, change, or stop.
7. Knock, Knock, Knockin’ on Blogger’s Doors…Interact, comment, like, share on social media: Twitter, Pinterest, Facebook, StumbleUpon, Tumblr, Reddit…
I’m just a girl. Standing in
front of her readers. Asking them to love me…well, love my blogging. Changing times, uncertain times, confusing times, trying times, for the world and even for blogging. Just as truth and facts are going “out of style”, so is blogging apparently. Reality seems to be a thing of the past – we don’t lie anymore, we tell alternative facts; we don’t blog anymore, we influence.
Sigh, not all change is good.
1. I think this is the beginning of a beautiful blog friendship. Of all the blog joints, in all the towns, in all the world, you walked into my blog…Thank you.
2. In blogging no one can hear you scream. Blog posts hit the blogosphere with a resounding splash or a deafening crash. Either way, if you did your best, move on to the next.
3. I see blog people. I see blog people. How often do you see them? Every time I open my email! I love your posts, but there can be too much of a good thing and my inbox turns into a horror story (and I don’t have time to read them). Deep breaths – if I keep doing beginnings, the end will visit me eventually.
4. I’m big, it’s the blogs who got small! Readers won’t always ‘get’ you, or agree, your jokes might fall flatter than a pancake on Pancake Tuesday https://yadadarcyyada.com/2015/02/17/well-always-have-pancakes/ Offended, appalled, argumentative, mean, shocked, non-facty, and downright grumpy – welcome to the internet!
5. There’s no crying in blogging! In blogging and life, you might sometimes feel like crying, but it just makes your eyes puffy and your keyboard drippy. On a side note, there will be crying if you go to experience Manchester By The Sea, pretty sure it was secretly sponsored by Kleenex.I’m not big on awards, but this movie and Casey Affleck, Lucas Hedges, and Michelle Williams should get a bunch anyway. One of the best movies I’ve ever seen, so real I forgot I was watching a movie, I felt like I was there; it hurt and healed, just as life hurts and heals.Just thinking about it, there is crying in blogging.
6. I’m going to make you a blog offer you can’t refuse. Follow my blog. I dare you. I double dog dare you to ‘like’ my post. Share blog posts you enjoy so others can enjoy them as well. So shines a good deed in a weary blogging world.
7. That’ll do, bloggers. That’ll do. Simplicity, honesty, heart-wrenching love, and singing mice, Babehttps://yadadarcyyada.com/2013/12/22/babe/ reminds us of those moments in friendships, relationships, blogging, work, loss, leisure, love, when you know, you just know, that’ll do, that’ll do.
8. You make me want to be a better blogger. I hope people like my blogging as is, not as they want it to be, but I don’t want to bang out whatever, just to say I posted something, so, you make me want to be a better blogger. Thank you.
9. Frankly, my dears, I don’t give a blog. Your life is a story – drama, comedy, romance, apocalyptic dystopian nightmare – it may not be a bestseller, but get out there and live it like tomorrow isn’t another day!
10. I wish I knew how to quit you, blogging. Time, money, energy, lack of response, no one beating down my door to make me rich and famous (I’d settle for MCM – moderately comfortable monetarily), all reasons, after almost 4 years of blogging I think of quitting, often. Yet I keep coming back, why, days counted less in numbers, more in heartbeats of community, contact, and comfort.
12.Dude, where’s my blog? So many blogs, so little time. How do you get others to find your blog? Social media? Yes! Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, StumbleUpon, Reddit, Instagram, share and attend awesome blog parties and linky parties, a great way to meet and greet other bloggers.
13. The Blogging Game. One word, one sentence, one post, one book, one show, one movie, one moment can change a life forever. Play at your own risk.
14. What we’ve got here is a failure to communicate. People may not have read the books you review or watched the TV shows or movies you watch; your readers may not share your political or lifestyle views; don’t travel or want to; don’t have any interest in your recipes, children, or pets…the list goes on. Get busy blogging, don’t over think it.
15. Blog On, Blog Off. Even Mr. Miyagi from The Karate Kid would agree, there are different blogging styles, rhythms, and choices. First learn to blog, then learn to fly.
16. I love the smell of blogging in the morning. The best thing about blogging? Other bloggers and readers. Take time to stop and smell the blogging.
18. If you blog it they will come. Content, content analysis, stats, SEO and other blogging resources probably won’t magically get you a viral monster cult following. Even if it does, readers can be fickle…
20. Today I consider myself to be luckiest blogger on the face of the earth… I started blogging to relax, resurrect my love of writing, and to be rich/famous – close to 600 posts, 225,000 plus views, 12,000 ‘followers’ later, well, at least I’ve reignited my love of writing.
21. Tell ’em to go out there with all they got and win just one for the bloggers. Blogging, like politics can be a popularity contest. If you lie to be popular, to get what you want, then what you want isn’t what you need, i.e., you need chocolate, but you shouldn’t lie to get it…begging is a different story.
22. We’ll always have blogging. Life and blogging can feel like our own personal Groundhog Day https://yadadarcyyada.com/2014/02/02/groundhog-day/ – whether we see our own shadow or not, whether it repeats until we learn something or not, I Got You, Bloggers and Readers…we’ll always have blogging.
Resistance can suck. It’s draining to be straining, pulling this way and that, feeling like you’re going nowhere, fast…I’m trying to think of it as a chance to build emotional muscles. Note the word ‘trying’. I guess I could also think of it as The Facts of Life or Growing Pains (RIP Alan Thicke, I’ll never get the TV themes you wrote out of my head).
I’m trying to resist the siren call of Netflix (note the word ‘trying’ again). Christmas movies/specials (even I can OD on those) and politics dominate the tube (don’t even get me started); most shows are taking a holiday break – Z Nation, Westworld, The Walking Dead…
With an emphasis on the gift of reading. New, almost new, new to you, gently used, regifted – books bought from wherever, or a gift certificate or e-certificate for books or ebooks. While it might be difficult to resist the bestseller list, why not try some indie authors, they’re the cat’s pajamas, remember, best-selling doesn’t mean it’s the best book. Shop local and/or shop within your blogging community. Buy from the author or go on Amazon (dot whatever your country) and look up some of these authors – ebooks download in a flash.
Many indie authors are also bloggers, like Teagan Riordain Geneviene, https://teagansbooks.com a skillful storyteller who’ll keep you chained to your book/ereader/smartphone/tablet/laptop for hours with her brilliant books, Atonement, Tennessee(https://yadadarcyyada.com/2015/10/03/sweet-dreams-are-made-of-this/ – my copy is so well-read it looks ancient) and The Three Things Serial Story: A Little 1920s Story which began as an interactive serial, readers/bloggers gave suggestions, three things each which were woven into the story. I just finished re-reading it and it’s the cat’s meow, as swanky and entertaining as I remember.
In keeping with the Roaring 20s, I saw Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them, from the J.K. Rowling book. I shared part of my about-to-expire-gift-certificate-for-two, since I went alone,with an older couple – see how easy it is to spread more Christmas cheer? I loved the Hidden Figures, Wonder Woman, and King Arthur previews and the movie itself brought back the wonder, the magic of early Harry Potter books/movies.
I love books from Random House, Simon and Schuster, etc., but I also love smaller publishing houses – Open Court, Jessica Kinsley Publishing, Page Street Publishing, BenBella Books, Agate, Sasquatch and the list goes on; bigger doesn’t always mean better. If you’re not only a gifter, or a reader, but a writer and want to be an author, go out there and get published, one way or another https://yadadarcyyada.com/2015/06/21/how-to-get-your-book-published/
I’ve given up resisting the lure of Christmas baking,
and once again I will be checking into Clementine rehab in January,
but I’m strangely trying to resist some forms of giving, ie when people tell you to give a 100%, that’s ridiculous, what if I gave 100% of my blood, or lent someone a 100% of my money, or gave them 100% of my time? The holidays are a time of giving, but one of the best gifts, remembering not everyone has someone https://yadadarcyyada.com/2015/11/22/how-to-get-away-with-christmas/ Please give your time, ideas, blood, items, whatever, not just in the holiday season, but all year round.
Speaking of giving, don’t forget to drop by (or drop by again and again, give the gift of up to 12 links, they don’t need to be Christmas related) my ongoing blog party, my Christmas card to my blogging family/friends https://yadadarcyyada.com/2016/12/08/dear-santa-i-can-explain/
Christmas is almost here and my birthday,
then 2016 ends. Who know what 2017 will bring? Be open to all the possibilities, don’t pine for what might have been, it might never have been what you really wanted, or needed. All the best to you and yours in this the holiday season and all the year through and to a Happy New Year!
With the Christmas lights on, it’s less dangerous. Here we are now, entertain us. I feel dazed, not contagious. Here we are now, entertain us…I’m worse at what I do best And for this gift, I feel blessed… Our little blogging group has always been. And always will until the end. HoHo, HoHo, HoHo, HoHo, HoHo, HoHo. Ummm, Smells like Christmas spirit?
In a kind of Welcome-to-the-Christmas-Jungle-type way, it’s been a strange few weeks, so Dear Santa, I Can Explain….
1. I’ve fought a prolonged battle with a vicious cold, it almost won, until I released my dragons, ok, it was chicken soup, but it was epic.
2. I overindulged in great gently used ‘finds’, tea with seniors, and raffles – if loving Christmas Bazaars is wrong, I don’t wanna be right.
3. I fell out of bed (and not in a fun way), luckily no serious injuries, but it sure knocked the stuffing out of me.
4. I was baking for Christmas and I had to taste, right? I couldn’t serve it or give it away without tasting, right?
5. Got the results of my colonoscopy, turns out my colon is a trophy wife, looks beautiful but doesn’t work.
I love Christmas, always have, but things have changed, become confusing. I feel like I’m being visited by the ghosts of rampant, raging, unrestrained consumerism – past, present, and future. The wraiths of oblivious conspicuous consumption, the specters of overt displays of wealth swirling around, I feel chilled, haunted, saddened – what could all that money be used for, who could be saved, cured, comforted, how much joy could be spread to so many instead of so few? This time of year isn’t about gifts, lights, food, carols, it’s about people, everywhere, whether they celebrate the holiday or not. How can anyone admire, emulate, and/or trust those who consume without a care?
Having lost so many of those I love in the past few years, the holiday season has more and more become a time of remembrance. Most of the memories are wonderful, but some are tinged with regret and loss; I listen to the carols, the songs sing, yet part of my heart wishes for more as it swells with remembers.
Here’s my Christmas card to you, dear readers. Let’s share some tidings of comfort and joy. Please join my 12 Links of Christmas Blog Party. It’s ongoing (why put a time limit on fun?), so keep on coming back right up to and after Christmas! The posts you link to don’t have to be Christmas-related and I’m not going to ask you visit other bloggers, comment, or share, but please, if you feel so inclined, give to others: press Like, reblog, share on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn, StumbleUpon, etc. No badges (we don’t need no stinking badges).
If this is your first time joining a blog party, I’ll be gentle. Cut and paste your link. Then in the comment box below, paste that link and tell the readers and other bloggers a bit about your blog and/or yourself (if you wish, not necessary). Leave up to 12 links (one per box please). Here are my 12 Links of Christmas…
I’d also like you to tell us what brings you comfort and joy at Christmas or anytime. Here’s an example, I get comfort and joy from doing nice things for people, little things, they’re not truly selfless acts (anyone remember that Friendsepisode?), because I enjoy them. I also love Christmas movies, the one place in the world where I’m pretty sure everything is going to work out well. Reading, walking, baking, board games, and I find my joy of writing has returned, creeping in. Of course, I find comfort and joy in wonderful son, family and friends, including my amazing blogging family.
I know everyone is busy, but please, join my holly jolly Christmas Blogging Party!
Nog nog. Who’s there? Virtual eggnog or hot cocoa (with mini marshmallows), take a sip, dip a biscotti or cookie.
Happy Holidays and take time to enjoy what really counts.
It’s never easy to say goodbye. Ok, that’s not true, sometimes it’s super easy to say goodbye, in fact, you wished could’ve said goodbye much, much earlier. You’re with someone, they’re annoying you, but it’s impolite to leave, or you feel you should or have to stay. Or when you’re at a party, function, event, etc. and some guests are driving you up a wall. There are times when you’re screaming goodbye in your head, measuring how many steps it would take to get to the door, or wondering if anyone will notice if you were to dive out of the window, full-on Die Hard – hmm, was that what Shakespeare was picturing when he said, ‘Parting is such sweet sorrow, wait to jump out that window till the morrow’? Something like that.
We love to tell stories, we’re natural born storytellers. Over 7 billion of us on the planet, telling our stories. So many stories. While we’re telling those stories, or hearing those stories, we’re not going to agree on everything all the time or be pleased all the time, but could we put all the hate, bullying, vitriol, name-calling, hyperbole, lies, persecution, injustice on the shelf? Maybe we could strive to disagree respectfully. There are many ways to tell stories, from many perspectives.
A long-awaited specialist appointment (now waiting for more, er, stuff and trying new, er, stuff) opened and reopened my eyes. No worries, it’s notfatal, to the best of my knowledge, it just feels like it’s killing me…
1) I need to take a break and focus on my health.
2) I need to write, not just blog posts, but my book, and maybe try to make more money to pay for my dirty habit…to clarify, it’s my chocolate habit, but it can be dirty; dark chocolate especially leaves terrible stains and smears everywhere.
3) It’s with a heavy heart that I write This Is Where I Leave You…actually, I didn’t write that, Jonathan Tropper did and it was delightfully flawed, if a little clever-clever, but I appreciate the exertion. Plots and characters somewhat transparent yet quite engaging. His authentically muddled and intriguingly idiosyncratic style keeps me reading. Hollywood made a valiant attempt to adequately adapt it to the screen with: Tina Fey (SNL, Mean Girls, 30 Rock, Spongebob Squarepants, Simpsons, Sisters, Muppets, etc.), Jason Bateman (Arrested Development, Zootopia, Juno, Paul, Little House on the Prairie, Knight Rider, etc.),
Adam Driver (Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Girls, J. Edgar, Lincoln, The Unusuals, etc. ),Timothy Olyphant (Deadwood, Justified, Catch and Release, Live Free or Die Hard, The Mindy Project, The Office, Hitman, Call of Duty),Dax Shepard (Robot Chicken, Idiocracy, Parenthood,and endless oddSamsungcommercials with wife, Kristen Bell who will always be Veronica Mars to me, also great in Deadwood), Jane Fonda (The Newsroom, Barbarella, On Golden Pond, Sunday in New York, Cat Ballou, Barefoot in the Park, The Butler, Georgia Rule, They Shoot Horses Don’t They, Klute, Coming Home, The China Syndrome, The Morning After, and you may know her from her activism and/or groovy exercise videos).
4) I might need to cut back on TV, way too many shows are just ads in disguise. ie. Ride with Norman Reedus should actually be titled: American Tourism, Ducati, BMW, Harley-Davidson, Honda, Indian, Kawasaki, KTM, Suzuki, Triumph, and Yamaha Pay For Ride with Norman Reedus. And it’s weird how he wanders around never opening his wallet, it’s like he’s still on The Walking Dead, I guess there’s no need for money during the zombie apocalypse – the Daryl Dixon Discount.
Gorgeous bikes, scenery, people (well, mostly), but obviously one long commercial. Don’t know if I’m now more or less inclined to be sad if Negan chooses Daryl. Just sayin’.
I’ll forgive AMC, after all, they also gave us: Breaking Bad, The Walking Dead, Talking Dead, Hell On Wheels, Mad Men, Fear The Walking Dead, Turn: Washington’s Spies, The American West, Into The Badlands, and now, Preacher, a gruesomely heartening supernatural tale of good vs evil, or more like good vs itself.
5) I need to find new ways to de-stress. Stress is everywhere these days. Even dogs and cats are under pressure to perform, and not just in endless and often demeaning internet videos, gifs, memes, etc. (see above, but how cute is that?); just look at their food – it has to be high in fiber, promote lean muscle, keep them at a healthy weight, all so they can be adorably frisky and playful, for our amusement. Amusement seems more important now than ever. We need to be constantly amused, entertained, busy. Is it a latent, twisted version of hunting and gathering, we now hunt and gather entertainment?
We even amuse ourselves with foodporn, I mean, food now…
6) I’m crushing on teacup pigs, some call them pocket pigs, or micro pigs, but I worry about their popularity, they could get bought up by someone like Bill Gates and we’ll have to buy endless crappy versions of them – Microsoft pigs.
7) I need to catch up on my reading. Numerous library books await my attention, with due dates, apparently some others have the nerve to want to use my the public library.
Life is all about the journey, not the destination, and sometimes that journey takes you not where you meant to go but where you’re meant to be. Reading takes you anywhere you want to go and while some books may not change the world, they could change your world.
My books to review basket is also overflowing. I almost missed out on a great murder mystery, These Shallow Graves by Jennifer Donnelly in the bookflood https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1415718938And I’ve enjoyed indie works – hidden treasures, like the ones previously mentioned here https://yadadarcyyada.com/2016/01/29/always-on-my-mind-blog-party/ and so many more. Luckily I can’t physically see the Netgalley books unless I log on, so I’m pretending I forgot my password (psssh, I know you remember your password). Books have many purposes: entertainment, distraction, learning, companionship, dreaming, but really, like pop culture they’re a way of examining life, a form of philosophy. Long time readers of this blog know I have an ongoing love affair with books, including Open Court’s…and Philosophy series, but there are so many of them, how can I read and review them all? I can’t, but I sure can try. If not on here, then on Goodreads. ie. https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1677400824
8) I wish The Newsroom (stunning cast of: Jeff Daniels, Sam Waterston, Emily Mortimer, Jane Fonda, Alison Pill, John Gallagher, Jr., Thomas Sadoski, Dev Patel, Olivia Munn, Marcia Gay Harden, Chris Messina, Kat Dennings, David Harbour, Hope Davis, Kelen Coleman, Grace Gummer, Constance Zimmer, B. J. Novak, etc.) was still on and that more people watched it.
Aaron Sorkin is a master at presenting all sides of, well, everything, logically, rationally, especially politics. We need more of that. Smart, well-balanced writing. To me, Sorkin is the ultimate optimist, an anti-cynic, after all, who else would keep monologuing, writing epic, inspiring speeches and broadcasting them in the hopes he’s actually reaching people, not just cleverly preaching to the converted.
9) So…Politics…That happened. I feel all Alice Through The Looking Glass, what if it’s all a dream? Maybe I went through a mirror, fell down a rabbit hole, opened a door, magically traveled through a wall to Platform 9 3/4, opened a portal, a Stargate, a paratime machine, a window, a crack? I keep hoping I’m in some alternate reality, some parallel Universe and I’ll wake up. Are we BrainDead (funny show, but making me a tad paranoid of the ants that keep invading my place)? Have aliens taken over politicians? Naah, too obvious. As Alexander Hamilton said:“If you don’t stand for something, you will fall for anything.”? Hmmm, how about stand for something with even a hint of logic, intelligence, integrity, or sanity?
Donald Trump, #Brexit, bogus indignation, lies, corruption, murder, abuse, war, poverty, disease, starvation, terrorism (of course, we’ve always got a new foe, it’s important to keep us scared, worried, after all, we buy more that way). Imagine what we could accomplish if we focused on what mattered and would help all people, not just a select few.
It’s too easy to long for a simpler times. Watching Brooklyn(https://yadadarcyyada.com/2016/01/08/stand-by-me/) it seems like life was simpler, less complex, less contentious, and it’s true in many ways. But we can’t live in the past. Can’t go back. Can’t unring bells that have been rung. With technology ruling our lives, we have to find ways to somehow enjoy the benefits of here and now without being consumed and overwhelmed by the here and now.
As for Brooklyn the film? It’s a nicely unpretentious offering about the choices we make and those that are made for us. Saoirse Ronan (Atonement, Hanna, City of Ember, The Host, The Lovely Bones, The Grand Budapest Hotelhttps://yadadarcyyada.com/2015/09/20/if-i-had-a-million-dollars/) is, as always, astonishing, With the depth of her performance you’d think she was 102 instead of 22; she expresses so much, so perfectly, sort of an anti-Kristen Stewart. Rounded out by the talented: Jim Broadbent (Harry Potter, Paddington, Bridget Jones’s Diary https://yadadarcyyada.com/2013/12/19/bridget-joness-diary/and a million others), Julie Walters (Calendar Girls, Harry Potter, Mama Mia!, Brave, and at least a million others), Emily Bett Rickards (Felicity Smoake in Arrow), Domhnall Gleeson (Star Wars: The Force Awakens https://yadadarcyyada.com/2015/11/05/go-home-star-wars-youre-drunk/Harry Potter, The Revenant, etc.
10) I’ve thought a lot about why the world more closely resembles the last days of Roman Empire and that line Gena Rowlands uses to chide/teach her moviedaughter, Sandra Bullock in the romcom Hope Floats, “It’s the worst kind of extravagance the way you spend your chances”. What if this applies to the whole world now? We need to stop spending our chances.
We need to stop settling. Stop lowering our expectations. Go out there, spend your chances wisely. We may live in a world supercharged by social media, where we dramatize each problem, instead of looking for solutions. Where gossip, blame, fighting, arguing, cool cynicism, magical thinking, phony outrage, lowest common denominator pandering, digital degrees of The Butter Battle Book, The Lorax, and The Cat in the Hat combined (Dr. Seuss would be so proud) rule the day. Where intelligence is mocked, sensationalism screams loudest, bits and soundbites of information, right or wrong, reign supreme. In fact, it would be really funny, if it wasn’t such a sad mess…
It doesn’t mean we have to buy into it. We can be more. Rise above. Care. Have character, loyalty, integrity, even if it’s not cool to do so. Choose courage. Choose love. Choose hope. Caveat emptor, lest we drown in the muck. You’ll find true power in being kind.
I write this with tears in my eyes and the words to Green Day’s Good Riddance (Time of Your Life) playing over and over in my head: “It’s something unpredictable, but in the end it’s right. I hope you had the time of your life.” I do, I hope you had the time of your life, I certainly did.
I can’t thank those of you who have supported me enough! Thanks for following, sharing, reblogging, commenting, visiting. I’m not ruling out coming back at some point, I’m just not well enough to continue now.
I’ll still visit my blogging family and friends regularly. Still take part in some parties, social media stuff, etc. Blogging is addictive. When you first do it, you feel like you’re standing naked (sorry for the visual), exposed, and then you start to love it. You have to silence your inner critic (she’s just jealous).
My posts stay here, so please, visit my vaults whenever you’d like, comment, share, I’ll still be here, after all, almost 3 years of blogging later there’s close to 600 posts, like these:
I’m not ruling out returning to this blog or another blog, or bookstores near you (she wrote wistfully). Some time away might recharge my batteries and I will regenerate (I could be the new Doctor in Doctor Who, I think it’s time for a female Doctor). Until then, so long and thanks for all the fish…come on, you think I’d leave without something to do with Douglas Adams, he’s at least partially responsible for my brain. I might be down now, but there’s no time limit on getting back up. It doesn’t matter how long it takes, I’ll get up, dust off, and be back, one way or another!
Life is choosing. Choosing to be happy or sad. Nice or mean. Hopeful or hopeless. Among the mass of expectations, concepts, beliefs, abstractions, and stereotypes swirls millions and millions of choices. We’re not always going to make the right choices. Sometimes we’re mean and feel sorry, sometimes we’re sorry we’re not more mean.
1) It’s hilarious, even 15 years later, maybe more so; 2) It’s wise and relevant, especially about how we’re brandwashed, er, brainwashed; 3) The words to the song keep echoing through my head, “Can’t you just pretend to be nice, can you at least pretend to be nice, if you could just pretend to be nice, then everything in my life would be alright.”
For me, people who pretend to be nice are pretty much as annoying as meanies. “A person who is nice to you, but rude to the waiter, is not a nice person.”- Dave Barry Yet there are still tons of genuinely nice people…but we’re designed to notice danger, it’s for survival. We notice loud stuff, outrageous stuff, bad stuff – it was meant to help us notice danger, pay attention to danger, to keep us safe and to keep our loved ones safe, but now, sigh, there’s the internet, you know the internet, like your neighbourhood gossip on steroids, virally, digitally frothing at the mouth.
Texts, tweets, memes, video, posts, gifs, statuses, chats, comments, updates, etc., blaming, blaming, blaming – basically blaming everyone – immigrants, women, social assistance recipients, minorities, religions, etc., well, that won’t get you a job, or make the rich stop screwing you (without consent or foreplay). Just as spewing vitriol won’t change your economic or socioeconomic status, or get you something you want, or bring back those you love. Sorry Grandma and Grandpa, sorry Mom and Dad, your famous, “if you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all” is stone cold dead. We’re all quickly learning you’re entitled to your own opinion and your own facts – just ask The Incredible Trump.
Maybe it’s easier to lash out than look in. Is it easier to yell at a clerk? Or scream at a receptionist (by the way, no one was paying any attention to your information until you screamed)? Or sharpen your claws: ‘You’re so brave to wear that shirt.’ Brave, really, I’m not running into a burning building to save babies and puppies, oh I see, you’re being catty. Than to just be nice?
When I asked an ex (note the word ‘ex’, for many, many reasons) why he couldn’t just be nice, his answer was, ‘it’s too much work’. Really? Could that possibly be it? Is it just easier to snark, snarl, sneer? Easier to mock, mimic, moan? Is meanness, ridicule, viciousness, derision a form of laziness?
Then again, if you’re not: molesting, abusing, being racist, getting all mass murdery, killing serially or non-sequentially, making human skin coats, terrorizing, stealing, lying, raping (yes, creepy, horrible Stanford rapist and any other rapists, no still means no and to clarify, unconscious also means no; not difficult to understand), you probably still qualify as ‘nice’, but hopefully we can try to raise the bar way, way higher.
Speaking of nice, I’m thrilled (thank you kindly) to be one of the winners of the Blogger’s Pit Stop and The Pinterest Game – please drop by, visit, share, it’s a great way to connect with other bloggers and lots of fun.
To the best of my knowledge, there’s no standardized testing for ignorance, intolerance, meanness, or unhappiness yet, but I’d buy stocks in that future booming business. Be nice, you don’t know what people have been through or are going through.
Is it too late to say sorry? ‘Cause I’m missing more than just your bloggy. Yeah, I know-oh-oh, I want to be a good neighbour bloggy (ok, perhaps I’m not going to be rapper anytime soon). I know it’s a busy time of year, but drop by whenever, dears, my blogdoor is always open. Please leave links in the comment box. Drop by often. Enjoy the virtual cake, chocolate, cupcakes, tarts, pies, cookies, and er, liquid refreshments. Meet and greet other bloggers. Introduce yourself. Be kind. Be nice. Have fun. Obvious now I’m from Canada, eh? Sorry.
Through the blog storm,
we reach the shore
We give it all
but they want more
And we wait for views
With or without you
Can’t blog with
or without views
And you blog yourself all day
And you blog, and you blog
And you blog yourself away.
If this had audio you’d know I sang it just like Bono of U2, it’s like we’re twins, ok, maybe closer to the Swedish Chef from The Muppets, but it’s all good.
Blogging is a lot like cooking. Some people do it instinctively. A pinch of this. A dash of that. Somehow they know just the right blend. Others follow a precise recipe.
1. First thing you need to decide, what kind of cooking, I mean, blogging do you enjoy? Home-cooked, formal, informal, sugar-free, spicy, sweet, sour, no artificial flavours or colours, grilling, gourmet, fusion? Do you want to indulge your readers with moist, sweet chocolate brownies (my secret, melt the butter, let it cool then slowly add it to the mixture) or spicy chipolte chicken taco with guacamole (drooling)…
2. With blogging, like cooking you need an appreciative audience. Those who don’t just eat to live, but live to eat. Those who don’t just like blogs, but love them.
3. Posts can fill up our email like a meal can fill up our stomachs, but too much of a good thing can be overwhelming, sometimes a snack is the way to go.
4. Processed food, junk food, fast food, sure, they call themselves food, but really, food by any other name is not always food…same goes for blogging.
6. Don’t think if people will: Like it, share it, reblog it, tweet it, agree, disagree, hate you, be a troll under your blogging bridge, or if you’ll end up looking like Mr. Bean with a turkey on your head. Just do what you want to do…that turkey looks good on you.
8. Sometimes you slave over a hot stove aka computer, plate your hopefully tasty content, and serve it up….you wait for readers to gobble it up, but sometimes they never come to the table, even when called repeatedly. Maybe they’re busy, after all, when they open their email, it’s like a giant buffet has been served up, how much can they possibly eat? Maybe they’ve already eaten or are dining elsewhere. It happens. Try again.
10. You can tell someone how to cook or blog, but that doesn’t mean they can do it, or do it like you. Or should. Cook what you want, blog what you want, eat what you want. Taste life.
My best advice about blogging and cooking? Don’t miss the donut by looking through the hole. Dear readers, any favourite blogging tips or recipes you can’t live with or without? Bon Appetit!
I walked
a path
I hadn’t
walked
in years.
The sounds of the city
sang their strange song.
The sights pilfered
my attention.
A Grecian effigy with no arms, but a whimsical flowered spring bonnet.
A tank incongruously set among the budding flowers with a background of lawyers and pizza; lots of cheese and hot grease –
oh, and on the pizza too.
I past my old doctor’s office, now a frat house. I smiled, remembering Dr. Shearer who raised sheep and around the corner lived members of the band, Sheep Look Up(ewe can’t make this stuff up, sorry, that was baaad)
I wish to go back, for a visit, in a time machine (preferably with David Tennant as The Doctor; come on, Doctor Whofans, who would you travel with?). I’d tell myself how little I knew. Be nicer to some. Apologize to others. Tell others to go to h-e-double hockey sticks (it’s Canada, eh, and they deserved it). Maybe see Prince in concert singing Purple Rain, Darling Nikki, When Doves Cry, 1999, The Ballad of Dorothy Parker, etc. once more. #RIPPrince
I smiled as a big RV chugged by, making me think of the latest installment of the Vacation movie series. Campy? Maybe even glampy! Cheesy? More than the aforementioned lawyers and pizza. Tacky? I expect nothing less. Might’ve watched it sooner if I’d known it had Chris Hemsworth (Thor, The Avengers, The Huntsman stuff) and Norman Reedus (Daryl Dixon, The Walking Dead). Small parts (bet no one says that often), but memorable, if creepy. I may never look at them the same again. Oh, who am I kidding?
I glimpsed a bank turned into a restaurant and vice versa, hmmm, wonder which saw more money? Shuddering, I thought of The Big Short. Awesome cast (Christian Bale, Steve Carell, Ryan Gosling, Brad Pitt, Melissa Leo, Selena Gomez)…
Snappy writing, but an altogether terrifying horror film. Versions of Eve of Destruction – Barry McGuire, The Turtles (not ninja), Johnny Thunders, The Pogues, D.O.A, The Dickies, and Public Enemy blared in my brain as the obvious soundtrack for this film. Why worry about nuclear threats, terrorists, natural disasters, and disease when assuredly the scourge of greed and corruption will wipe us out first?
I’d left plenty of time for myself, better early than late. Cars whizzed past, buildings blurred, making me curious, how many were Turo and Airbnb? Would you, dear readers, rent your car and/or home?
Finally there, I folded myself into the 3 foldy gown…I had better luck than the full moony older gentleman, thankfully an attendant helped him; laughing at old or infirm people isn’t good sport. With two Donnas there, I got ‘Donna P’ (say it out loud…there you go). Tests done, I started back. I waved at a tabby cat reclining regally on a window ledge who obviously didn’t feel I was worthy of his time. Correct, the bird swooping past, more fascinating by far.
Home again, I happily listened to my son’s monologues. I knew what my doctor would say – not urgent (doctor code for: it’s not cancer), but I need to see you soon; kind man, he’s happy when he can actually help me. I was spot on.
Nora Ephron’s words drifted into my mind, “everything is copy” (check out the documentary of the same name). Inspired me to write this and think, wow, my blog was on the edge of 200,000 views (now over). Never in my wildest dreams could I have imagined so much blog love. Thank you all.
And thanks for taking this walk with me, you made it easier. Also, Happy Earth Day!!!
Some of you, dear readers, may have noticed I changed my tagline, “Vague Meanderings of the Broke and Obscure”. Why? I’m trying it out, after all, I feel not quite as obscure, my meanderings a tad less vague, ok, this post wasn’t the best example of that…although I’m still broke, despite the unused donate button, lol.
I thought, “Wish you were here” worked better because, well, I do.
Remember that label?
This is not a toy?
As a child I used to think, really, or is it a toy? As an adult I think, really, or is it a toy?
Labels continue to amuse me. Remove plastic from pizza before placing in the oven. Are we just stopping natural selection with all these labels? Then again, with the taste of some frozen pizzas, who’d notice? It’s also amazing how many “Do not eat” labels on things you wouldn’t possible even think of eating.
One of my all-time favourites is: if you can’t read the label, don’t use this. Huh? So basically, don’t spray deodorant in your eyes, sit on an oven door, don’t use a curling iron internally, don’t drink toner, pepper spray can irritate your eyes, hot beverages are indeed hot, and the list goes on. What’s your top weird label, dear readers?
1. Then again, observing people, I suppose these labels aren’t as weird as you’d think. Like those people who stand uber close to you in line. Do they think it’ll make the line move faster, or I’ll leave, either way, slow down, I’d appreciate dinner before you get that close.
2. What is with eating while driving? Really, is life that busy that people can’t stop and have a sandwich? Try the ‘o’ word: organization. And those poor little Stop signs, they’re getting a complex from being ignored…
3. Who writes these TV shows (“Do you have a swab?, “Did you get the swab?” “Are you out of swabs, how can you be out of swabs, we need swabs!”, what you need to get is a Thesaurus and out of Johnson & Johnson’s, ummm, anyway, I digress), books, and/or movies where all characters race around to keep, like, one main character alive? Does this person secretly have the cure for cancer? Other people drop like flies around them. or because of them, or to save them, but as long as they stay alive (more or less), it’s all good.
4. Money can’t buy happiness, sure, but it can buy food, shelter, security, I’d be way more comfortable crying in a nice house with a pool and not worrying about money all the time. Just sayin’.
5. No wonder young girls are so confused about body image. Women in music videos wearing clothes that could double as napkins gyrating against, well, anything. Men don’t feel the need to dress or act that way. Imagine the time we’d have for equal rights if we had never been told what shape to be, what to wear…who to be.
6. If you find politicians horrifying, pretend they’re children (not a big stretch), stop giving them so much attention.
7. The news keeps taking about how bad the economy is, not news to me, my economy has always been bad.
8. People who complain that you shouldn’t eat non-traditional foods for breakfast clearly haven’t figured out doughnuts are cake which is just like pancakes and you eat those for breakfast, right?
9. People who say they don’t do mornings are doing morning as they say it.
10. There’s nothing better we can do in this world, no greater kindness than making people feel safe, with food, shelter, comfort, love, and compassion, not fear, hunger, prejudice, poverty, and hatred.
My last post https://yadadarcyyada.com/2016/03/09/take-on-me/ had all that talk of adulting, this week I put adulting on hold, went to a March Break matinée (yes, alone and isn’t it a weird reflection on society that if I were a man, I would be seen as creepy doing so; a few rotten apples do spoil so much, still got some looks I was there without a child). I thoroughly enjoyed The Peanuts Movie for $3; $1 went to Kids Help Phone and I got coupons (free popcorn and movies) – charity, coupons, childhood, and reclining seats – you can’t see me right now, but I’m The Breakfast Club fist-pumping in the air.
My point? Labels are just labels (lawsuits aside), common sense is the best label. Hope your weekend (and the First Day of Spring/Spring Equinox) is a warm hug.
Seeing is believing,
or is it believing is seeing?
Or not seeing is believing?
I’m confused.
There are things we can’t see that we believe in, and things we can’t see we don’t believe in. How do we choose? I can’t see atoms, air, sunshine, germs, Wi-Fi, magic, ghosts, hope, despair, Santa, love, hate, vampires, cancer, pain, mental illness, God, aliens, pain, good, evil, a cat’s purr, microwaves, pollution, carbon monoxide, autism, a baby’s breath…
Should we assume none of these are real?
I can feel the sunshine on my skin, hear a cat’s purr, use the internet, witness the horror of cancer…Geez, at this point, I’m held together with the duct tape of atoms and hope. If those things are real without being seen, why not the others? It’s not the same in blogging, we have to be seen. But how?
1. You know those little bubbles in carbonated drinks, all fizzy, tickling the nose, and expanding the stomach? That’s blogging. It can be effervescent, pleasing, irritating, confounding, overwhelming, addictive. And while most of us don’t want to expand our stomachs, we do want to expand our readership. If you’re just doing it for yourself, that’s great, but then why do it online, why not in a journal or diary?
2. Don’t fixate on number of views. Blog as often as you and your readers enjoy. Do it for the fun of it, for money (stupid question, money is a necessary evil), fame, a book deal, movie deal (I just had an image of who might portray me in the movie of my life, Helena Bonham Carter? No, probably Mindy Cohn).
3. The internet is a giant virtual haystack and yes, in this analogy, you are the needle, I am the needle, more specifically, our blogs are the needles. Shift around the haystack – you can’t expect to just ‘be found’, or find others.
Look for blog parties/linky parties/blog shares… Jason – https://aopinionatedman.com/ Janice – http://mostlyblogging.com/ Danny – http://dreambigdreamoften.co/ Elena – http://www.livingwithbatman.com/ Vicky – http://www.singlemotherahoy.com/ April – https://diapersandtutus.wordpress.com/ And more. Read, share, like, comment. And blog engagement groups/boards are rampant on Facebook and Pinterest. Twitter is overflowing with hashtag days (Suziehttps://suzie81speaks.com/ gets us trending every Sunday with #SundayBlogShare – the lovely ladies at http://honeyquill.com/ give us #LinkYourLife – there’s also #MondayBlogs #TuesdayShares#wwwblogs #BeWoW #bluskyfriday #ArchiveDay #WeekendBlogShare). Don’t just attend, participate.
5. Your readers won’t always ‘get’ what you’re blogging about or agree. Some will be disinterested, some downright rude…Keep wandering through the blogging desert (or dessert) and you’ll find the awesome ones, astounding ones, generous ones, hopeful ones, ones that inspire, ignite, and make you overjoyed you ever heard the term, blogging.
6. Blogging is about being part of something, otherwise you’d just sit alone typing…and we’ve seen the movies – that can either lead to a bestseller…or murder.
As a young child I believed many things, if I watched a movie again the ending might change, or the money I put in the bank would be the exact same money I’d get out…my Mom, who worked at the credit union at the time had the delightful task of teaching me this life lesson when I wanted my ‘lucky’ quarter from my account. Oops.
Now, older, wiser, I may not believe what I used to believe, or have to see to believe; I may not always know what to believe, but I still want to believe. What about you?
As a writer I have to believe words have power. One of the words I dislike is hate (note I didn’t say I hated hate). It’s overused. People hate their life. Family. Weight. Home. Car. Cats (maybe they sense your hate). Government. Politicians. Job. Hair. Cake (you are so reading the wrong blog). Books. TV shows. Songs. Actors. Movies. Vegetables (how do you hate something plant-based?).
I’m tired of hearing people say they hate…I’m not sure they know what that word means. Hate should be reserved for really, really bad people and things, like: child abusers, rapists, murderers, Hitler, warlords, dictators, alien overlords, stuff like that.
1. Let’s review, do you really hate your life or just certain aspects? Your whole life is a big category with many moving parts, pick the right part to hate, let the rest roll on.
2. Standing in the middle of a room silently or loudly screaming, “I hate my life” or “no No NOOOO!” repeatedly will probably make you feel slightly better for about 30 seconds, but it’s not a long-term ‘fix’.
3. This is usually the point when advice-giver types tell you to change your life. That’s all well and good, but what if some things are beyond your ability to change? Should you just accept them, or rail against them, lay down and kick and scream until you feel better, or until someone offers you ice cream to stop, or threatens to call the authorities (and no ice cream)?
4. How much time do you spend each day ‘hating your life’, I suggest you cut that in half, help others with the other half, you’ll feel the hate drift away.
5. Take a deep breath. This probably won’t help you hate your life less, but hopefully you might get a nice breath of fresh air, or the smell of fresh-baked goods.
6. Do something, maybe something different, or something to help someone else, again, may not make your life full of singing and woodland creatures doing your housework, but it might remind you of the good things.
7. Take charge of your life, unless you wouldn’t feel comfortable having you in charge, after all, do you even remember where your keys, or the remote is right now?
8. Are you at least changing the things you hate about your life? You’d hate to get stuck in a rut of hating the same things for decades.
9. Check your birth certificate. Are you old enough to hate your life? There are some weird laws out there, you don’t want to be breaking any.
10. Write down what you hate, maybe there’s a great book, or movie or TV show, song, etc. in all that hate. As much as people say they love positivity, so many popular shows, movies, books, plays, songs, etc. are about dysfunction, hate, crime, death, destruction, apocalyptic worlds, and misery, including Misery.
Maybe the haters just need a nap. A nap always makes you feel better. I’ve been enjoying a tiny bit more sleep (even when awake) in the past week (new meds).
Fibromyalgia and sleep don’t get along, but as much as I can hate the pain it inflicts on me 24/7, the constant fatigue, feeling left out of life sometimes, there’s no point, it is what it is. I have a choice, I can choose hate and be all grumpypants, or I can choose love and keep enjoying what I have and hoping for better days ahead.
If I said anything wonky during my blog party https://yadadarcyyada.com/2016/01/29/always-on-my-mind-blog-party/ (still open by the way, drop by anytime and promote your blog, for free, yes, free – we hear that word often, but it’s rarely true, in this case, it is) – I’ll blame it on the drugs (totally legal ones). Thanks to all those who came out. Happily, my bed and I are back on speaking terms, for now, and we didn’t even need sleep counseling.
Haters gonna hate, so let’s bake them a cake…seriously, who can hate when eating cake?
Be brave. Be bold. Choose love…and naps…and cake (not necessarily in that order).
Decisions. The average person now makes more decisions in a day than most did in weeks, months, even years. Decisions can engulf us. Haunt us. Overwhelm us. Interrupt us. Even stalk us in our dreams, ummm, a Nightmare on Choice Street? Choices are great, but too many can make it difficult, or almost impossible to make and trust decisions. Then comes the morning after, littered with “Did I make the right choice?”, “What did I do?”, “Can I return this?”, “What was I thinking?”.
Even in blogging there are so many decisions. At first, it felt frightening, like I was that boy in Jurassic Park, when Dr. Grant was explaining how Velociraptors kill.
Now I’m more like Chris Pratt, on a motorcycle, riding with the Velociraptors in Jurassic World, which for me was an all-out, action-packed cheesefest (in a good way), but a noticeable lack of Jeff Goldblum.
And yes, we’ve all made the wrong decisions, like someone thinking it was a good idea to make a certain theme park ride that shall remain nameless, ok, Tomorrowland, into a movie. It had its moments, mainly involving George Clooney and Hugh Laurie – I do so enjoy when Laurie’s given a chance to rant.
Even after years of blogging I still have trouble making some decisions, and have more blank-I-just-can’t-make-this-decision-moments than would seem humanly possible..but mostly it’s much, much more like It’s A Small World After All.
Blogging has taken me to places I might never have gone:
2. Hopeful places…
Thank you, Mary Smithhttp://www.marysmith.co.uk/ for your riveting novel, No More Mulberries and equally entrancing non-fiction offering, Drunk Chickens and Burnt Macaroni: Real Stories of Afghan Women. Reminding us that so much of the stereotypes, drama, and propaganda are fabrications – to sell products, news, and government policies; that strength, compassion, and hope still blossoms, especially in the hearts of the oppressed.
4. Complex places… Ever wonder what happened after? You know, afterDarcy and Elizabeth, afterJane Eyre and Rochester? Some authors take up the challenge and continue the classic stories. It’s awfully daring, foolhardy, or just cashing in. In the case of Luccia Grayhttp://lucciagray.com/ – I’m going with daring. As a reader, I didn’t feel this was just to piggyback on the fame, but because Gray loves the enigmatic character, and wanted to continue Eyre’s story through her Eyre Hall Trilogy. The first book, All Hallows at Eyre Hall draws you in, and by the second, Twelfth Night at Eyre Hallyou’re on tenterhooks, awaiting more.
If you’re a writer, film, art, whatever, contact me at: iwanttobelieve@rogers.com I do reviews, honest opinions only.
One way or another, we’re all busy.
Finding blogs we enjoy is challenging enough, but making time to read them is daunting.
Why not put all the awesome blogs in one place?
I promised you a blog party https://yadadarcyyada.com/2016/01/24/take-it-easy/
Here it is! 1. Mix and mingle, refreshments to your left beside the archives (what do you think of the new theme?). 2. Please leave your blog link or post link in the comment box below along with any introductions. One link per comment, but come back as often as you’d like. 3. Please reblog to spread the word or like, share on Twitter, Pinterest, Google+, Facebook, etc. Like, share, reblog, tell your family, friends and blogneighbours. 4. I will visit and respond asap (at the snail’s pace I’m moving these days, the next Star Wars film could be out before my asap…kidding ). 5. Have fun, it’s a great way to find bloggers and have them find you.
Thank you for coming to the party and for supporting my blog…You’ve made blogging a decision I’ll never regret.
Maybe I didn’t blog love Quite as often as I could Maybe I didn’t treat posts Quite as good as I should If you felt like second best Sorry, it’s just lack of time You were always on my mind (you were always on my mind) You were always on my mind
Well I’m a-runnin’
(ok, walking quickly)
down the road,
tryin’ to loosen
my load
I’ve got seven
million things
on my mind
Four million that want to own me, two that want to stone me, one that could be a friend of mine.
Take it easy, take it easy.
Don’t let the sound of your own words drive you crazy. Lighten up while you still can. Don’t even try to understand. Just find a place to make your stand, and take it easy…
Whether in blogging, work, love, parenting, friendship…The Eagles (goodbye Glenn Fry) had it right – take it easy. The sound of your own wheels (the ones turning in your brain) aka the sound of your own words – spoken, written, or even in your head can drive you crazy. Instead, I want to Take It Easy, to celebrate – despite the war and strife, the Canadian dollar sinking faster than the Titanic (the ship, not the movie)…
rising food prices (wait, how many were going to eat cauliflower in January anyway? Eat in season, or frozen), Star Wars mania, lack of affordable housing and healthcare, loss, illness…but at least there’s no zombies, and I still have all of you – my readers and other bloggers!
You make me happy when skies are grey, you’ll never know, dears, how much I love you – thank you, thank you, thank you for being here!
Friday January 29th we’re going to beat the January blahs, the winter ennui, the snow woes with a knockout blog party!
I was trying to get it together for this week, but seriously, The X-Files is returning, my hold of Season 3 of Orphan Black came in at the library, my son has a Pokemon thingie, schoolwork, housework, workwork, lifework, adulting, decisions, snow, cold, snow, cold (repeat)…I think I’m catching a cold, oh, and did I mention The X-Files is returning?
And some of you may have noticed I’ve been trying out new themes. Turns out choices are limited for mobile-friendly themes in the ‘Free’ category on WordPress, but I will choose in time to expose it (oh my!) for the celebration!!!
Come back Friday January 29th and join in the fun! It’s easy, leave your blog link or a link to an old post, new post, red post, blue post in the comment box (one link per comment, but come back as often as you like). Introduce yourself, wander around, eat some cake, be astonished at the size of my archives (oh my!), and mingle with the other bloggers. There will be virtual cake, blogging advice, and who knows what else! It may take awhile, but I promise I’ll read, visit, and reply to everyone!
One thing I’ve yet to regret (but the day is young) is blogging. I’ve virtually met some words-cannot-express-how-awesome people here who’ve welcomed me with open arms into their blogging family.
And I get swag! Really, my mail carrier randomly hands me treats! Like books (my drug of choice), or chocolates from Chicago I won from the enchanting Cherhttps://thechicagofiles.wordpress.com/ a delightful friend, blogger, and ex-pat Canadian. Yes, I got a box of chocolates delivered to my door just for reading a blog post! I love blogging! Those poor chocolates didn’t make it through the night – next of kin was notified…then eaten.
It may seem like the internet is a giant virtual haystack and we’re just tiny needles, but we can find each other with blogging parties and thanks to the tireless efforts of amazing and generous bloggers like:
Thanks to all of you for standing by me, supporting me, my blog, and my blogging break.
Against all odds, I’ve tried to keep up with your blogs too, but couldn’t seem to muster the energy or inspiration to write a post myself.
I’ve resolved not to make any resolutions this new year, but to keep exploring this uncharted life of mine.
But here’s what happened when I was gone, sort of….
1. I learned I’m never going to be a proper gym bunny. It seems to involve an excessive amount of hair-flipping, giggling, spandex, and a thong or two where they don’t belong or two.
2.Inconsiderate people keep using my public library to take out books I wish to read. On a brighter note, they’ve increased the hold limit to 60 items!
3. Another plane, another train, but no way to get those Beastie Boys outta of my brain. Every time I see or hear an ad for the movie, Brooklyn voices inside my head sing: “No sleep till Brooklyn!”.
4. If you don’t try you can’t fail, but you can’t succeed either.
5.I miss when stuff didn’t have so many names or labels, when you could just like what you liked. My lovely childhood crushes on Tom Baker, Kirk, and Bobby Darin, ok, that one ended badly when I found out he’d been dead for several years (somewhere beyond the sea, for sure), anyway, all that would now be called ‘fangirling’. Long before Mr. Darcy plunged into that lake and Daryl Dixon picked up a crossbow, I had labels I didn’t know about. Forget labels, just be you, that’s enough.
6. People who say, “I’m not going to say I told you so” are really saying, “I told you so”.
7. I missed blogging! I needed a break, to write my book, catch up on life, which is being dreadfully uncooperative, but I missed this and you, dear readers and I bet you missed all my, er, blogging advice.
8. Imagine, you win millions in the lottery, would you spend it on a vanity project? That’s what Alice (Kristen Wiig) does in Welcome To Me, a weird little film with a big, brilliant cast including: Tim Robbins, Joan Cusack, James Marsden, Wes Bentley, Linda Cardellini, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Alan Tudyk. Full of uncomfortable moments, it had me questioning quite a few things, especially blogging – is blogging just a vanity project, a sort of emotional exhibitionism?
9. While suffering from Doctor Who, The Walking Dead, Haven, The Blacklist, Into The Badlands withdrawal, which wasn’t pretty and mostly consisted of me trying not to whine about it, since these are clearly First World Problems, to the extreme, I decided to read more (is that possible?). Why not get caught up on a few of the fascinating ‘And Philosophy…’ series from Open Court? I started with Doctor Who and Philosophy, then Downton Abbey,Homeland, and The Walking Dead. I noticed all these books toil to shatter the myth that TV is simply a vast cultural wasteland. Fighting zombies, taking tea, traveling through time and space, those are hooks to get us to watch and keep watching, it’s really about the interaction between the characters, the choices, the sacrifices, those moments when we see ourselves and feel or learn something. If it can happen in a book, why can’t it happen on TV or in movies? I love these books because like the TARDIS, they’re bigger on the inside, making me feel all esoteric, ideologicalish, and thinky, but without getting that time-consuming philosophy degree. Just the way I like it.
10. I sometimes forget (or wish to forget) what a tricky beast and ruthless, relentless taskmaster Fibromyalgia can be, but I’ll keep trying to keep on keeping on…easier said than done.
Tomorrow we could be alive or dead, but today, my friends, today we are alive, so go out there and live.
Hello
It’s me
I was
Wondering
if after all
this time
we could
virtually meet
To go over
what is
real
or
bloggerspeak
Hello, can you hear me? I’m in Canada dreamingabout who I’ll one day be Hello from the other side Feels like I’ve blogged a thousand times I sometimes forget, uphill can make you rest And at least I can say I tried
Not as much tears me up anymore So hello from the other side Feels like I’ve blogged a thousand times
Thanks Adele, like ‘Hello’is ever leaving my head.
Hello, I’m probably one of the most honest people ever – except I lie.
When I say I’m fine, sometimes, I lie.
Even if it’s mostly to myself.
I haven’t been well for a while now, even more so than usual, which is saying something. I’ve been pushing through with sheer force of will, but even that is wearing thin.
Apparently I need more ‘self-care’, which apparently, I’m very not ‘good’ at it.
So when an unlikely source, Groupon threw me a line – 50% off movies and popcorn (I brought the popcorn home for my son), I thought, why not? I wasn’t disappointed to watch The Hunger Games take its final bow on the big screen, except the title Mockingjay Part 2, really, that’s kind of boring, how about The Mockingjay Awakens, or Mockingjay Hurray! or an Australian version, Mockingjay G’day! I wasn’t thrilled by The Hunger Games books, but I did enjoy exploring our world, choices, freedoms and illusions of, through this world, onscreen more. When Peeta (Josh Hutcherson) keeps asking Katniss (Jennifer Lawrence), ‘Real or Not Real’, I understood. Too often the world can feel violent and even surreal, but what is real…or not real? I suppose the best we can do is try to stand for something, or we’ll fall for anything.
Christmas music jingled away as I waited for the movie to begin, and I realized, blogging and Christmas have a lot more in common than I thought, like…
1. It’s better to give than receive. Even if you feel you don’t have enough, try to help others in some way. In blogging you can give by: ‘liking’, ‘sharing’, and/or ‘commenting’. You may not agree with every word, but appreciate that blogger took the time to post (as you wish to be appreciated).
2. Connection – you never know who you’re going to virtually meet and how they’ll change your life, or you theirs.
3. Fruitcake and posts – love, hate, like bits of, or given time, both could be used to prop open a door to…
4. Lots of surprises, awkward moments, comfort, joy, regifting, and more than a few ugly sweaters (still, it’s all in the eye of the beholder).
5. Plenty of glitz and fancy bits, yet sometimes, the substance and what really matters still shines through.
6. Gingerbread, yes, delightful, but sometimes hard to handle, especially without breaking.
9. Posts hung like stockings by the internet chimney with care, with hopes that readers soon will be there.
8. Cookies, meals out, eggnog, and other holiday treats, all awesome, but too many and you start to feel sluggish, tired, irritable, and overwhelmed. Blogging can be the same – know yourself, know your readers.
9. We can all be Santa’s Elves filling Santa’s shelves – bringing posts, perhaps comfort and joy…
10. Cookies, carrots, comments, posts, shares, maybe some milk (or in some cases, more adult libations) – all left for those we hope will show up.
11. Visions of sugar plums. Hoping to inspire and please, but sometimes, as hard as we try, our posts, our holidays, our days fall flat. There’s no time limit on getting up, or starting over. Dust off and try again!
12. Christmas trees, all different, just as all blogs are different. Don’t worry if you have the right niche, enough followers, comments, likes, etc. Don’t overthink. Send your creativity into the world, who knows what will come of it…anything, everything.
With blogging and Christmas and everything else, be brave, do what you feel, even if it goes wrong, you tried and that can’t really be wrong. Slow down, take the time to really enjoy and take it all in (including chocolate).
Yet during the holiday season we’re bombarded with images of social wealth.
Everything from: Family dinners, parties, drinks with friends, hugging, skating in pairs, walking together looking at lights, Secret Santa and gift exchanges, spontaneous snowballs fights, eating roasted chestnuts, and of course, people running into the arms of loved ones at airports…
But what if those things aren’t in your life?
The social media holiday barrage, Christmas FOMO (Fear of Missing Out), anticipointment (trademark?), Facebook, Instagram, TV, Google+, Twitter, MySpace (kidding, just wanted to see if you were paying attention) – all bursting with shiny images of happy people enjoying the holidays together. It can be overwhelming yet it’s only a day, like any other.
So if you find yourself less-than-surrounded by family and friends during the holidays,try to:
1. Marathon your way through the season, which apparently now begins in July with brief visits from other holidays. Don’t limit yourself to Christmassy stuff…be glad you’re not invited to a Game of Thrones Christmas party; see who survived (Christmas) on The Walking Dead; try to figure out what they’re cooking on Breaking Bad; or catch up with Mrs. Brown’s Boys (Dear Santa, I can explain…). Soon itwill be January (sorry, I skipped ahead, was I wrong in assuming you don’t have anyone for New Year’s Eve either?), then you’ll have a few weeks to recover before the Valentine’s Day trauma begins, maybe.
2. Gently ‘add’ yourself to someone else’s Christmas or add someone to yours.
3. Find dating sites/apps and go on a holiday dating spree. Eggnog your way through stories about his/her ex, mom, ex’s mom, work, football, baseball, hockey, fashion, cars…Who knows, maybe you’ll find a Christmas miracle.
4. Adjust your expectations. Social media is one long high school reunion. Everyone is wearing their best outfit, just lost weight, and sharing only highlights of their life.
5. Read, write, blog, sing, bake, work, clean, declutter, exercise, sleep, go to a movie…flashback to the 70s – dance, wear turtlenecks, bellbottoms, ponchos, and go seeStar Wars (or not). It’s all good.
6. Have a Single Christmas Party (not for singles, just you, be your own party).
7. Ignore the season, the gaudy decorations, the commercialism, multiple Santas in multiple malls (unless you work there, try to stay out of the malls altogether) and create a Michael-Bublé-Bing-Crosby-Burl-Ives-free #safespace.
8. Start a new tradition with yourself or others, hopefully one that doesn’t involve eating your feelings (and don’t forget legal).
9. Help others this season – the best way to keep your mind off your problems is to help others with their problems.
10. Under no circumstances drink too heavily, that could lead to calling, texting, or emailing an ex, or watching other people having family time, especially through their windows. Though oddly specific, it’s good advice.
It’s not about what you have, what you get, or even who you’re with, this season is about anything being possible.
Want to know how to get away with Christmas? Simple, enjoy the season and each day, not the way everyone tells you is enjoyable, but the way you enjoy it.
Adding blogging to that and anxiety, well, it could be the proverbial straw.
When it’s quiet here on my blog, I have time to think.
Why am I really doing this?
Should I be doing this?
I have so much else to do, is this a distraction?
Or is blogging just another version of chocolate, sappy movies, wanting to cry, desperately wishing a time machine would materialize in my living room to whisk me back to a time when the biggest decisions I had to make were: what to wear to school, who to hang out with, what to listen to…Probably shouldn’t go back, I might scream at myself to quit wishing to grow up and just enjoy growing up.
Some days I feel like blogging is more Hotline Blog (I’m assured Drake will drop this as a follow-up to his famous Hotline Bling) You used to like me on my blog post Late or early when I needed blog love And I know when that hotline pinged It could only mean one thing… But these days, you’ve become a ghost Wonder if you’re out there forgettin’ about my blog post Doing other things, maybe making cinnamon toast
But blogging isn’t all about Likes, it’s about enjoying each other…
I try to imagine what my blog would have been if I blogged as a child, you know, before I knew:
1. I’d have a computer, in my home.
2. I’d use this computer to tell perfect strangers (well, maybe not perfect) stuff about my life.
3. My worst recurring nightmare wasn’t fear, it was the fear of fear.
4. Bacon would become both hero and villain.
5. Everyone lied to me about stuff, including but not limited to: Santa, this won’t hurt (it did), The Tooth Fairy, being “almost there” (we weren’t), there was no more chocolate (there was), and that I’d use math in real life…
6. Life is less Game of Life and more Monopoly.
7. Power is a commodity, not necessarily the one that lights up your home.
8. What skin tags are, let alone having them.
9. The world is crawling with serial killers, if TV is to be believed.
10. Some people will still be mean, even as adults.
11. I’d use numbers from a fortune cookie for lottery tickets.
12. My body would be my worst enemy.
13. I’d look more like Jessica Fletcher than Jessica Alba.
14. I’d still be watching Doctor Who, Monty Python, and so would my teen son.
15. I’d lose hours of my life to a mysterious world that delivers weird yet amusing things to me right at home (yes, including pizza and Amazon).
16. I’d ever tire of Christmas (well, the commercialism of Christmas).
17. I’d try figgy pudding…get out there – try, visit, read, comment, share, take part in something different.
18. I’d let zombies into my home at least once a week…and love it.
19. You can’t eat all the cake, you have to share it, same goes for blogging.
20. I’d have many families – the one I was born into, the ones I found and found me, the ones I’ve made, and this amazing blogging community.
So get out there, hakuna matata – visit some blogs, enjoy each other, and never forget, you’re not alone.
Living with chronic conditions means you have to change your expectations, accommodate, modify, and most of all, adapt. I’m trying to be kind to myself. 
This is a weird way to screen…for anything. Asking us, asking us, asking us, asking us, do you have: Fever•New onset of cough•Worsening chronic cough •Shortness of breath (sometimes, when watching Jason Momoa, does that count?)
•Difficulty breathing•Sore throat•Difficulty swallowing (don’t say it out loud, that’s what she said)•Decrease of loss of sense, of taste, or smell•Chills (They’re multiplying; it’s electrifying!)•Headaches•Unexplained fatigue/malaise/muscle aches•Nausea/vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain (Have you seen the news/internet? If you don’t have these symptoms you’re not paying attention)•Pink eye/conjunctivitis (gross)•Runny nose or nasal congestion without other known cause (like what?)…
Why make people do that whole spiel? Seriously. Why not have a digital tickety-tappin’ done by Lin-Manuel Miranda rippity-rappin’?
And, did you Wash your hands? Seriously, before, during and after COVID, wash them!!!
– I keep trying to get away from movie theaters, but they keep trying to pull me back in! Perfect for Autumn, amazing cast, but since people can’t even follow arrows in stores, or signs, or instructions (even physcial distancing) – could you trust them in theaters?!? 
COVID fatigue? Ha! 
Just the latest excuse for bad behaviour 
Really, in this supernatural, so-much-cooler-finally-Fall 
Lazy. Crazy. Whiner. 
I wanted to be with you alone
politicians, celebrities, television shows, smartphones and other electronic gadgets and gizmos, cars, causes, friends, fads, flights of fancy…
but his cast-mates are bright shining lights cutting into any and all plans. Why hope? Why not? Another season has been approved and I’m cheering. Yahoo! For 
It’s funny to think I first read this book almost 35 years ago, when I naively thought it was fiction and thank goodness this could never happen. Note to self, never say never. If you haven’t started reading one of Canada’s most precious natural resources, Margaret Atwood, I suggest you love yourself enough to begin your journey. I’ll continue with her latest, “The Testaments”, filled with hints of things to come. 
a new love (who doesn’t have to but if he looked like Negan, Starlord or Daryl Dixon that would be cool, just as completely random examples),
muffins, laughter, strawberries, donuts, chocolate, chocolate donuts, kindness, cupcakes, family, and oh yeah, to write another chapter in my own story.
your story is bound to be a bestseller 
Why? I have to get it all out of my head.
Life
I’m born again every time your 
‘Cause your 
I grant 
Lauren Graham crackers (crunch super-fast), 
e beef, yogurt,
Bloggers and readers of every age.
and more, it’s not too scary, er, depending on your definition of scary. 
Agatha Christie 
Cronenberg, all the Hammer films, Scooby Doo(?) 
were fun, those who are Bewitched by lies, what happens if or when you wake up? 
It’s a complex story that could be hard-to-follow, perhaps because it’s such a unique fusion of the natural and supernatural, but instead this tactile and celestially charged story has wings that fly in a metaphysical rush through love, hope, honour, action, and mostly, redemption. It was one of those, I’ll-just-read-a-little-more-maybe-a-few-more-pages-just-one-more-chapter-until-I’d-devoured-the-whole-book-and-had-to-write-this-book-review-or-my-version-thereof type things. Heart-thumping, in more ways than one. I can clearly picture The Contract as a movie, or a Netflix series (hint hint Netflix, get this before Hulu, Amazon Prime, Playstation Vue, HBO, or someone else gets it).
also, Abigail Spencer, Clayne Crawford, Linds Edwards, J.D. Evermore, J. Smith-Cameron, Nathan Darrow, Caitlin FitzGerald, Adelaide Clemens, Luke Kirby, as well as an impressive amount of Deadwood and The Walking Dead (idea for a new show, The Walking Deadwood? ) alumni. This is a compelling cautionary tale of how our carelessness with people can start chain reactions of brokenness. That despite unspeakable (but needs to be spoken of, long and loud) cruelty and injustice, you can find hope, kindness, justice, and even, redemption, sometimes in the most unlikely places. If this doesn’t fix in your mind how easily life can come undone and redone, I surely don’t know what would.
I will always love you…even if you don’t agree with my politics. I’ll still say my piece, why is everyone arguing? We don’t need to agree on everything, we just need to believe simple things,
and watch out for Revenge of the 5th…
It’s been sung by everyone, from Kenny Rogers (when he looked like Kenny Rogers, why do people do cosmetic surgery, 
I don’t think this will change anytime soon. But in the whimsical winsome wisdom of the surprisingly philosophical show, Blossom:
Saw Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2 (awesome, but I wasn’t as hooked on the soundtrack as the first one…I am Groot) – it made me want to run out and help the world. Had to rewatch Guardians of the Galaxy 
Also, Dean Norris (Breaking Bad 
Many indie authors are also bloggers, like Teagan Riordain Geneviene, 
Life is choosing. Choosing to be happy or sad. Nice or mean. Hopeful or hopeless. Among the mass of expectations, concepts, beliefs, abstractions, and stereotypes swirls millions and millions of choices. We’re not always going to make the right choices. Sometimes we’re mean and feel sorry, sometimes we’re sorry we’re not more mean.
I walked
Remember that label?
Seeing is believing,
As a writer I have to believe words have power. One of the words I dislike is hate (note I didn’t say I hated hate). It’s overused. People hate their life. Family. Weight. Home. Car. Cats (maybe they sense your hate). Government. Politicians. Job. Hair. Cake (you are so reading the wrong blog). Books. TV shows. Songs. Actors. Movies. Vegetables (how do you hate something plant-based?).
Decisions. The average person now makes more decisions in a day than most did in weeks, months, even years. Decisions can engulf us. Haunt us. Overwhelm us. Interrupt us. Even stalk us in our dreams, ummm, a Nightmare on Choice Street? Choices are great, but too many can make it difficult, or almost impossible to make and trust decisions. Then comes the morning after, littered with “Did I make the right choice?”, “What did I do?”, “Can I return this?”, “What was I thinking?”.
Hello, it’s good to be back!
Turns out, being an adult is hard work.
